"We're ecstatic," Morey said.

Morey sounded like a guy who had won the lottery as he ran down the superlatives. Great competitor. High character. Solid defender. Good at penetrating the lane and finding the open man. Outstanding at initiating contact to get to the line.

First, though, let's see where the Rockets are in the post-Tracy McGrady era. A cloud has lifted from the locker room. There's no more of the will-he-or-won't-he questions.

McGrady is gone from the Rockets, probably forever, and Morey spent the last few days trying to acquire a star. He was unable to make that deal, so he swapped point guards - Rafer Alston for Lowry. By clearing cap room, he's better equipped to make a big deal this summer.

It'll be fascinating to see how the Rockets grow without McGrady. Whatever issues McGrady and Ron Artest had are gone. No player will fret about when to defer to McGrady.

The Rockets have been more interesting, energetic and unselfish without McGrady. They have the NBA's best center in Yao Ming and a coach with a good track record.

"We feel we're a team that can get out of the first round of the playoffs," Morey said. "Our big challenge is getting to the playoffs. Yao is playing the best ball of his career. Artest is playing great. (Luis) Scola has been great. Our coaching staff got everyone focused."

Lowry a battler

Now back to Lowry. Morey recalled the words of Villanova coach Jay Wright.

"He calls him the smartest point guard he ever coached," Morey said.

Morey summoned his director of player development, Brett Gunning, a former Villanova assistant.

"He's a great young player," Gunning said. "He's a tough kid out of Philly, a feisty, scrappy defender, a guy that can ignite the break. He's really good in the paint. Our fans are going to love him."

It's funny how coaches have one searing memory of a player. For Gunning, that memory is an exhibition game against the Rockets.

"He had a triple-double," Gunning said. "That sums up how much he loves to play. He doesn't care whether it's a preseason game. He's ultra competitive."

Lowry was the 24th pick of the 2006 draft, but lost his starting job to Mike Conley since Lionel Hollins took over as Grizzlies coach.

"There were lots of teams trying to get him," Morey said. "We feel he'll help us now and be a huge part of our future."

He's a 25 percent shooter from 3-point land and 41.2 percent overall. From a shooting standpoint, he might not be a significant upgrade over Alston. But his ability to penetrate is a skill the Rockets have sought for a couple of years.

"His strength is attacking off the dribble and finding shooters," Morey said. "He's a great transition player."

In Daryl Morey we trust. He has been on the job less than two years and upgraded the Rockets with the additions of Scola, Carl Landry, Aaron Brooks, etc.

As Morey was selling his trade, Rick Adelman and his staff were working on a new rotation and trying to figure out whether Lowry or Brooks would start.

Now a word about Alston. He did himself proud in four seasons here. He was never an elite player, but he performed with enthusiasm and tried to do the right thing for the team.

He also wasn't afraid to mix it up with players a foot taller and 50 pounds heavier. He was a first-rate defender and good in the open court.

His weaknesses were not finishing around the basket and not having great vision once he got into the lane.

Perhaps the most important talent for an NBA point guard is the ability to get into the lane and find open teammates. Alston wasn't great at this.

It seems the Rockets have been looking for a point guard forever. Now Adelman has two to choose from.

Brooks has a dimension of speed few NBA players have. At times, he has seemed on the verge of being a good NBA player. He also has been inconsistent. Neither Lowry nor Brooks is big, so there will be defensive challenges.

Making a point

The Rockets decided to take a chance on a point guard they believe is better than his numbers say. There might have been change-for-the-sake-of-change in the mix. That's OK.

The Rockets aren't going to win a championship without McGrady, but they weren't going to win one with McGrady playing the way he had been.

Some of us were ready to write the season off last year when Yao went down. Morey refused to concede anything and is doing the same thing.

He believes in this roster and this coaching staff and is eager to see how these last weeks play out. Let's enjoy the ride with him.