In the end, the Rockets were absolutely thrilled how things played out. They’d worked frantically to move up to get Patrick Patterson. And then every deal fell apart, and to their surprise, they got him anyway.
“We almost had a disaster,” general manager Daryl Morey said. “We couldn’t move up and didn’t think he’d still be there at 14. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good.”
Their draft board wasn’t your draft board. They had Patterson rated sixth overall, ahead of centers Ekpe Udoh and Cole Aldrich.
Had the Rockets traded into the top five, they would have taken Derrick Favors or DeMarcus Cousins. Once those two centers disappeared from the board, they focused on No. 6 — Patterson.
The Rockets love this kid. They love his talent, size, work ethic and character. He’ll fit nicely in a locker room that has Shane Battier, Yao Ming, etc.
“It’s important to add quality people to your locker room,” Rockets director of scouting Gerald Madkins said. “Not to take away anything away from his on-the-court ability, but he really fits in with our culture. He has a hard-working professional approach. You really can’t measure that. I think we value that more than most teams.”
There’s just one teensy-weensy problem, and it’s really such an insignificant thing that only a real spoilsport would even bring it up.
Center still a need
The Rockets are desperate for a center to share the position with Yao, to play big minutes, clog the lane, block shots, etc. They simply can’t go to training camp without acquiring at least one more.
“We weren’t looking to address that through the draft,” Morey said. “There were very few players in the draft at the quality we’re looking for. They were all going really high.”
He tried anyway with his pursuit of the picks that would have gotten him Cousins or Favors. Now he’ll hope Yao has a healthy and productive year. Jordan Hill will go to training camp as a center. And Morey will sign a free-agent center.
Veteran Brad Miller, a Rick Adelman favorite, is a possibility, but Morey will look at others.
This is the point where we trust Morey. Has he ever let you down? No, he hasn’t. Are you convinced he’s really good at his job? Yes, you are. Do you trust him to do the right thing? Yes, you do.
In Morey we trust, right? He might have been more aggressive in attempting to move up, but he wanted to hold onto his younger players for next week’s pursuit of free agent Chris Bosh.
If Patterson is the consolation prize, he is a pretty good one. He measured a legitimate 6-9 at the Chicago combine, making him a legitimate NBA power forward.
“We think he has a chance to be a very solid starter in this league, potentially more,” Morey said. “(He’s an) unbelievably versatile guy. He played two years at center at a very high level. Then played at the four next to Cousins and (Daniel) Orton this year. He was very productive in either role.”
In the end, Morey weighed whether to reach for a center, or to take the player he had rated highest. He went for the talent.
“He checked all the boxes for us: need, size, locker room, just down the line,” Madkins said. “We’re absolutely ecstatic about this pick.”
A ‘high ceiling’
So the Rockets got better on Thursday, but they didn’t vault over any of the teams they have to pass to make the playoffs. Cousins or Favors might have made them a dominant team, but the Rockets never had a chance.
Morey emphasized again and again that he was happy to get Patterson.
“I think people view him as having less upside,” he said. “We don’t see him that way. We view him as someone with the work ethic, athleticism and physical tools to have a very high ceiling.”
He’s not what the Rockets need most at this point. Stay tuned for more.
