Category: Houston Rockets Blog

Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has waived guard Brent Barry.

Barry (6-7, 210, Oregon State) signed as a free agent with the Rockets prior to last season on July 10 and averaged 3.7 points and 1.4 assists in 56 games (one start) played.  The 14-year NBA veteran was selected by the Denver Nuggets with the 15th overall selection in the 1995 NBA Draft before being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers prior to his rookie season.  Barry played two and a half seasons with the Clippers before being traded to the Miami Heat on Feb. 19, 1998.  His playing career also included stops in Chicago (1998-99), Seattle (1999-2004) and San Antonio (2004-08).  He has averaged 9.3 points, 3.2 assists and 3.0 rebounds over 912 (449 starts) career games played.

The Rockets roster now stands at 15 players: David Andersen, Trevor Ariza, Shane Battier, Aaron Brooks, Chase Budinger, Brian Cook, Joey Dorsey, Chuck Hayes, Carl Landry, Kyle Lowry, Tracy McGrady, Pops Mensah-Bonsu, Luis Scola, Jermaine Taylor and Yao Ming.

You remember Tracy McGrady, right? He was pretty awesome for quite a while, but has recently been written off as an afterthought.

T-Mac faces a long road back, and it’s not likely he’ll ever be as good as he once was, but the first step in recovering is actually being out on the court. So, yeah. He’s out there. Playing basketball and stuff.

Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports:

The court was dropped down in the middle of the McAllen Convention Center, a make-shift training camp venue far removed in so many ways from the arenas and tests of the NBA to come. It was, however, a start.

Perhaps the setting was fitting, a reminder of how far Tracy McGrady still must go. But for the first time since microfracture surgery last spring, McGrady practiced with the Rockets on Sunday. He went through a few stints of the scrimmage, moving well and without pain in a small, but significant step in his comeback bid.

His first participation in training camp did not alter his schedule. Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said it was “part of the process.” The Rockets still expect McGrady to be out at least until an MRI scheduled for Nov. 23. Still, he played and all reports were that he played well.

Without Yao Ming this season, Houston isn’t expected to accomplish much. And it’s not realistic to expect T-Mac to be a one-man wrecking crew. But under coach Rick Adelman the Rockets play great total team basketball, so always expect them to do a bit better than predicted.

Houston Rockets Owner Leslie Alexander announced today that he has re-signed Daryl Morey as the team’s General Manager and Managing Director of Basketball Operations. Morey is entering his fourth season with the organization and his third as the team’s head of all basketball operations. As per team policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.

“Daryl has displayed great leadership during his three years overseeing our basketball operations,” said Alexander. “In his short time here, Daryl has already established himself as an innovator in the field of talent evaluation and player acquisition. My focus is to bring another world championship to the fans of Houston and I believe Daryl will be instrumental in achieving that goal.”

Morey has built a Rockets team that has gone a combined 108-56 (.659) and has set a number of team records over his two seasons as General Manager. His ability to manage and bolster the roster earned him YAHOO.com Executive of the Year accolades in 2008-09. In addition to earning votes for 2008-09 NBA Executive of the Year, Morey was named “Top 50 Most Influential in Basketball” in 2009 by HOOPSWORLD. Morey was also recognized in 2009 as one of “The 10 Most Creative People in Sports” by Fast Company magazine.

Houston registered a 53-29 mark in 2008-09 to give the team a third consecutive 50-win season for the first time in team history (52-30 in 2006-07 and 55-27 in 2007-08). The Rockets also advanced to the Western Conference Semifinals for the first time since 1997, taking the L.A. Lakers to a Game Seven despite playing without Tracy McGrady and losing the services of Yao Ming for the final four contests of that series. In 2007-08, the Rockets won a remarkable 22 straight games, which stands as the second-longest winning streak in professional sports history.

“I would like to thank Mr. Alexander for the faith he has shown in me and the basketball staff,” said Morey. “Under his leadership and with the resources he provides, the team is positioned well to consistently compete in the Western Conference. Mr. Alexander has always made it clear that his ultimate goal is a successful return to the NBA Finals and I look forward to continue working with him to meet that challenge.”

Morey came to Houston after serving three years as SVP Operations for the Boston Celtics. With the Celtics, his responsibilities included the development of analytical methods and technology to enhance basketball decisions, such as the draft, trades and free agency. Prior to his time with the Celtics, Morey worked as a Principal consultant with an emphasis on sports at The Parthenon Group, a leading strategy consulting firm. Morey was also a statistical consultant with STATS, Inc., the industry pioneer in the use of sports statistics highlighted in the Michael Lewis book Moneyball.

The Houston Rockets introduced “We Are Red Nation” as its new marketing campaign for the 2009-10 season during the team’s annual Tip-Off Party at Toyota Center this evening.  The team also introduced their first-ever alternate uniforms.

In an effort to tie the team’s current look to its storied past, the new uniform features elements which are both new and old.  The familiar “ketchup and mustard” color scheme used during the team’s back-to-back championship seasons has returned — along with the name “Houston” on the front of the jerseys.  The font used for the letters and numbers is the same that is used on the current home and away uniforms, which were introduced prior to the 2003-04 season.  Additionally, the team’s familiar “R” logo appears on the front collar as well as centered above the player name on the back of the jersey and on both side panels of the game shorts.  The red jersey also features yellow piping that extends all the way to the shorts.

Discuss this and the Rockets in the InsideHoops Houston Rockets forum.

Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey today announced the promotion of Gersson Rosas to Vice President of Player Personnel.  Rosas, who is entering his sixth season with the organization, had served as the team’s Director of Player Personnel last season.

“Gersson has played a key role in our team’s success over the past few seasons and this expanded role is more representative of the impact he has had on our basketball operations,” said Morey.  “His superior decision making and leadership qualities are critical to our basketball operations department.  The rapid expansion of Gersson’s role and responsibilities over the past two seasons serves as a clear indication of his value to our basketball operations.”

In his new role, Rosas will be responsible for assisting Morey in all phases of the team’s basketball operations.  He will oversee the team’s player personnel matters including the evaluation of draft prospects, free agents and potential trade targets. In addition, he will supervise the Rockets’ domestic and international scouting departments, while also assisting in the coordination of the team’s Player Development program.

Prior to his present stint with the Rockets, Rosas was the head coach of the Global Games Prep USA Team during the summer of 2004. Rosas’ experience also includes work as a graduate assistant for the men’s basketball team at the University of Houston (2003-04), as an assistant coach on Westbury Christian’s High School state championship team (2002-03) and as a basketball coordinator for the Venezuelan Basketball Federation during the 2002 World Basketball Championships, which was the Venezuelan National Team that featured former Rockets guard Oscar Torres.

In addition, he has been an active participant in the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders program, the NBA’s global basketball development and community outreach program (2006-2009), including serving this past summer as the Americas Camp Director in Mexico City. Rosas also served as the director of college counselors at RBKU All American Camp (2007, 2008) and as a camp coach at the Reebok ABCD Camp (2006, 2007).