15 players the Rockets landed past their prime

6. Josh Smith

At his peak, Josh Smith was a fringe 20 and 10 forward, who was a hellacious shot blocker. Smith was also an elite athlete, as he won the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest early in his career, which helped him on the defensive end.

Smith was also a force in transition, as he could get out on the break and run and was a ferocious dunker. But again, defense was his real calling.

Smith finished 10th or better in total blocks five different times and finished second in three consecutive seasons. Smith's defensive prowess wasn't limited to just blocking shots though, as he was also a pickpocket for opponents, finishing within the top-20 in total steals on three different occasions.

The Rockets ultimately added Smith in 2014-15 after he was bought out by the Detroit Pistons, and although he's become synonymous with the 2015 Western Conference Semifinals, when he helped the Rockets eliminate the Los Angeles Clippers in spite of James Harden being relegated to the bench in Game 6, he wasn't the same player in Houston. 

Sure, in Smith's first season in Houston was fairly effective: 12 points, 6 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 43.8 percent from the field and 33 percent from long-range (which was a bigger deal than it seems). His free throw shooting was Shaquille O'Neal-esque though (52.1 percent).

And the second season was flat-out disastrous, as he made just 34.3 percent of his shots, 27.1 percent of his threes, and just 48 percent of his free throws.