The Houston Rockets emerged from Thursday's NBA Draft with more players than one would have originally thought, but amidst all of the trade chatter, the only move that Houston made resulted in them sliding up three spots late in the first round. Chilling, isn't it?

The Rockets capped off draft night by selecting Kansas forward Marcus Morris with their first pick and Italian League forward Donatas Motiejunas with their second pick (via a trade that lost them Brad Miller and landed them Jonny Flynn, as if either of those terms can be taken seriously). They also re-acquired a second-round pick to take Florida forward and SEC Player of the Year, Chandler Parsons, who will now be tasked with convincing people that he is not Chase Budinger.

Thursday night saw plenty of frustration from a fanbase that may gradually be growing impatient. With Kawhi Leonard and Chris Singleton on the board at fourteen, Daryl Morey elected to take Morris, whom Morey says was their best player available at the time. The general consensus, however, was that Morris, despite his talent, was a power forward, or at least a tweener, and thus a redundant pick. I shared these sentiments with most of you, and I won't deny any of my initial thoughts: when the pick was made, I wasn't a fan.

To start, the Rockets just had to take someone from Kansas. Yuck. I suppose, for the sake of fandom, I should probably begin to pick away at the scab of disgust layered upon Morris and upon each and every Jayhawk I've ever laid eyes on. But it won't be easy.

Personal biases aside, there's a fine line between, as Morey said in his post-draft interview, "giving Coach [Kevin] McHale more options" and making a coach's job tougher. With Morris and Motiejunas, McHale will have more options at his disposal when it comes to mixing and matching different lineups, sure. Sometimes, though, I think this can be a headache for a coach who is trying to divide minutes and put together a final "closing" lineup at game's end. In drafting for the "best available," it's still important not to completely ignore the current roster and inadvertently send a coach into a frenzy as he tries to figure out how to best put together a capable, compliant squad.

Now that I've had some time to go back and watch more of Morris' tape and clear my head from the KAWHIKAWHIKAWHI train of thought that wouldn't leave for hours, I've warmed to the pick, just like I've eventually warmed to nearly every decision that this front office has made. I'd like to disagree with the Morris choice, if only for the principle of exercising free will. Yet, while it was a risky move, it was most likely the right one. Draft grades (which are somewhat useless this early anyhow) and explanations are after the jump.

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According to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, the Rockets have bought back the second-round pick that they sent to Minnesota in the Jonny Flynn deal.

The Rockets did trade this pick. They bought it back to take Chandler Parsons.

As Feigen notes, Houston took Parsons, a 6-foot-10, polished small forward out of Florida. Assuming the Rockets make a few moves and make room for Parsons on the roster, I'm excited. He's a real good player, one that I think has the potential to be a starter down the road, if not a solid bench staple in the league for years to come. He does a little bit of everything well, from shooting to passing to running the floor. His athleticism is a little suspect, but at 38, he's great value for Houston.

Regarding Houston's roster space: according to Marc Stein, a move could be made soon:

ESPN.com sources: Houston making newly acquired PG Jonny Flynn available to interested teams. Wolves shopped Flynn liberally before draft.

I suppose I'm a little confused by this, as Houston has tried to acquire Flynn multiple times over the past year. By that account, I figured he'd stick. But the Rockets currently do have two good point guards, as well as an overflowing roster. Stein also notes that acquiring Flynn got the Rockets under the luxury tax line, so that makes sense. For those counting at home, tonight's roster movement looks like this:

Incoming

Marcus Morris

Chandler Parsons

Jonny Flynn

Donatas Motiejunas

Outgoing

Brad Miller

In a trade that will be filed under "To Be Determined" for quite a while, the Houston Rockets acquired Jonny Flynn and 20th overall pick Donatas Motiejunas from the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Brad Miller, the 23rd pick in this year's draft (Nikola Mirotic), the 38th pick and a future first-round pick.

Flynn was a lottery pick back in 2009 and never lived up to his potential during his two years in Minnesota, but I think a lot of that had to do with poor coaching and an inability for Flynn to adjust to the triangle. He should do better in Houston, assuming he ever sees the court. He makes three point guards for the Rockets.

Motiejunas has been a Rockets favorite for quite a while. He has great potential on offense, but many have questioned his ability to play defense, rebound and dedicate himself to the fullest. This is no surprise for Rockets fans: the front office has always liked big men who can shoot, hence the acquisitions of Brad Miller and Dave Andersen, to name a few. Let's hope Motiejunas pans out slightly better during his time in a Rockets uniform.

Losing Brad does not really qualify as a "loss." He's clearly past his prime and never did much for Houston, though he could sure pass the ball -- that never changed. The future first has yet to be determined, but hopefully it's not a lotto pick. That might drive me nuts.

It's another ho-hum move from Morey, in addition to the ho-hum Morris pick. You can feel it: he's still stockpiling, still adding assets. The Rockets must believe that a star player is only within reach on the trade market.

So, that's it. That's Houston's draft, for now. They are out of picks, unless they decide to trade back into the draft. They're now over their projected roster limit as well, so someone will be moved, somehow. What does everyone think?

If Marcus Morris can play small forward in the NBA, I'll like this pick. If he's just another power forward for Houston to stockpile, I'm incredibly confused.

With Chris Singleton and Kawhi Leonard available, Houston chose to go with the available Morris twin instead. He can score, he can guard, but are we sure he can do that against the three? If not, I'll take Patrick Patterson and move on with my day.

Don't rule out a move from Daryl Morey and Co. as the draft continues, but for now, I don't like it. At some point, perhaps, I'll watch some film and get a better look at his quickness and agility. Then again, if Draft Express' Jonathan Givony is already calling him a power forward...

... then I'm slightly worried. Fine, Rockets, draft for best available, but Marcus Morris -- despite perhaps being the best available -- is not much of an upgrade over what Houston already has in its arsenal.

I'll have video and quotes from Marcus' press conference later tonight.

UPDATE: Well, unlike last year when I waited thirty minutes for Patterson's presser, the NBA rushed Morris into the room and out of it before I walked in. I'll get something with the 23rd pick.

UPDATE 2: WUT.

Hou getting flynn. Miller to minny

Assuming that's Brad Miller, I'm happy with this.

UPDATE 3: WUT.

Motiejunas will be traded to the Rockets. Unclear on other details.

SOMEONE JUST TELL ME WHAT IS HAPPENING.

UPDATE 4: Finally.

The Rockets and Wolves have agreed to trade J Flynn and Montiejunas to Houston for Brad Miller, 23rd pick and future 1sst, source says

The Houston Power Forwards, everyone. Fitting, you know, with the Houston Tight Ends on the other side of town.

The time is here at last for the 2011 NBA Draft!

Unless something crazy like a blockbuster trade goes down, this will be your thread for all 1st round draft discussion.

As of right now, there have been mentions of the Rockets trading up from 10 all the way up to number 2.  We've heard the names of Courtney Lee, Chase Budinger, Patrick Patterson and even Jordan Hill come up in trade rumors. So it would appear that cheap, young talent is the only thing on our roster other teams are interested in. Because I've yet to hear a peep of Luis Scola or Kevin Martin departure talks. But this was expected.

As far as all of the Josh Smith hopefuls, the latest is that Atlanta is trying to trade him to Minnesota for the #2 overall pick. This would make me happy on two fronts; first, he doesn't become a Rocket and second, the Hawks can finally draft a Center.

But what will Daryl Morey do? Does he stand pat and select one of the "22 players" he has graded as "First Round Talent" with 14 & 23? Or does he swing for the fences and try to jump up high in the lottery for a young guy he has his heart set on? The time has come to find out.

Put on your lucky Robert Horry jersey, say a prayer and cross your fingers for hopefully something special.

In case you're just now getting ahold of some Internet, the Milwaukee Bucks -- once thought to be a prime trade target for the Houston Rockets -- traded away the 10th pick in the first round of the NBA Draft to the Sacramento Kings, who traded their seventh pick to Charlotte, who handed Milwaukee their nineteenth pick. A bunch of players were involved, too, but that's not important for the purposes of this post.

First and foremost, what matters to me is how the draft selections will be affected. Sacramento expected to take Jimmer Fredette at ten, leaving open the possibility that Kawhi Leonard could slip to Houston at fourteen, and if Utah takes Leonard at twelve, Houston could grab Kemba Walker without moving, either. Suddenly, a new batch of options have landed into Houston's lap.

I wouldn't be surprised, however, if the Rockets decide to move up regardless of who could land at fourteen. Leonard could go at nine just as easily as he could slip. The eighth pick -- currently owned by Detroit -- would be a prime target should Charlotte snatch Bismack Biyombo from underneath the Pistons' nose. There are many other trade options as well. By the time the night ends, I wouldn't be shocked if another five or six trades went down. As Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com said on Twitter, teams want to get business done before the lockout. Poor draft or not, this is the time to conduct that business. 

The Houston Rockets have been mocked every which way you can mock an NBA team. Between their two first-round picks, they have been pegged to go big, small, short-term, long-haul and have even been rumored to want to trade out of the draft altogether. Tell me this isn't exciting, or at the very least, incredibly frustrating.

As the draft approaches in the next few hours, I thought it best to take a final look at where the mockery will ultimately stand. And yes, the picture above is from my seat in the house. I'm closer to the podium than I was last year, so that's nice. ESPN The Magazine is also seated in front of me. I'm almost tempted to treat them like the annoying kid on the roller coaster who is seated directly behind you and whose hand occasionally brushes with your hair. For the sake of my "career," however, I'll likely keep to myself.

By the way, per the Draft Express mock, Houston offered Courtney Lee and the 23rd pick to acquire the tenth pick. That would give them two first rounders, perhaps enough to trade into the top five. However, Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that Sacramento has struck a deal with the Bucks and Charlotte, likely eliminating Houston from acquiring that tenth pick. as Chad Ford reports, the draft order has been set until kickoff tonight. Things will get dicy once Cleveland is placed on the clock.

UPDATE: Per ESPN.com's Chad Ford:

Deal: Bucks get Beno, Stephen Jackson 9 & 19. Bobcats get pick 7 & Maggette. Kings get 10 & John Salmons.

Oops, Chad.

My mistake on 9th pick. Bucks have 19th pick, but Charlotte retains No. 9 pick.

I'll update my mock for the final time. See below. Unless Detroit is convinced that Tristan Thompson is their man, I think this opens up serious consideration for Houston to be able to move up.

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The latest on the Houston Rockets NBA Draft news front is nothing surprising, though the details may be useful to know. According to ESPN's Andy Katz, the Rockets are feverishly attempting to trade up to acquire the No. 2 overall pick in the draft. 

Exactly how persistent have they been in their pursuit of the pick? Meh, about ten offers worth [emphasis mine]:

Minnesota has four trade scenarios on its board for the No. 2 pick. As of midday Wednesday, the Timberwolves now are leaning toward Arizona's Derrick Williams over Kentucky's Enes Kanter of Turkey. But the Wolves are actively listening to offers for No. 2. Phoenix and Washington are two teams that aren't involved, but Houston, which owns pick No. 14, has proposed at least 10 different options for Minnesota's No. 2.

Funny enough, I have a hunch that all ten of these offers have excluded Kevin Martin. It's not practical to expect anything less than Martin, but somehow, I think Daryl Morey could swing a deal without trading his lanky efficiency gem. And that's only because I believe in the Minnesota Timberwolves and their ability to do not very smart things.

The odds that Houston pulls this off are low, but if a deal were to go through, I'd be a little concerned. I don't think this draft is as bad as some say. It's deep. You'll find solid rotation players as late as the thirties. But aside from Kyrie Irving, I don't see anyone capable of living up to "top five pick" status in the way that many players have in past years. If Derrick Williams pulls off the feat and becomes a star, it's my belief that he will only do so as a power forward. He's not quick enough to play the three.

Plus, how many young power forwards would a Williams deal give Houston on top of losing Martin? If Houston wants to draft for talent, fine. But moving Martin and piling on to the power forward position would be incredibly risky. Would the Rockets really be better off with that roster?

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