Don't blame Melo for CP3's slow start, Morey's mistakes

Making Carmelo Anthony the fall guy for the Houston Rockets' 5-7 start is the lazy, easy way out.

For starters, replacing two solid 3-and-D wings in Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute with a declining isolation player was obviously a terrible decision by management. Anthony's posted similar subpar numbers to last season with the Oklahoma City Thunder while continuing to be such a sieve defensively that two-way rookie Gary Clark surpassed him in the rotation. These are things that everyone should have seen coming.

However, the Rockets' problems extend far beyond the struggles of a bench player making the veteran's minimum. Dwyane Wade hinted at those deeper issues in a tweet on Sunday, and general manager Daryl Morey echoed the sentiment.

"We're struggling as a team. It's my job, it's coach's job to figure this thing out. But from one to 15 - and I'll put myself in there since a lot of this is on me right now - we're not playing well and we have to figure it out. We're evaluating everything," Morey told ESPN's Tim MacMahon.

CP3 isn't himself

This wasn't what Morey had in mind over the summer when he gutted his roster to spend $160 million to retain Chris Paul.

So far, Paul's shooting 40 percent from the field and 34 percent from deep while averaging a career low in assists and turning the ball over more than ever before. His highly publicized slap-fight with Rajon Rondo cost him two games, and he couldn't make up for it by carrying the team when James Harden missed time.

After finally breaking out of his slump with a 26-point performance on Sunday, Paul revealed that he's dealing with right elbow tendinitis. That could be seen as a positive, as the future Hall of Famer should return to his career averages once he recovers. Of course, it's also worrisome that an injury-prone 33-year-old is logging more minutes per game (35.5) than in any season since 2011-12.

The bigger concern with Paul this season is his lack of finishing in the paint. He's shooting only 50 percent within 3 feet of the basket, and his sudden inability to make those shots is hurting his playmaking. Despite being one of the most efficient point guards of all time, he's developed a recent bad habit of throwing wild bail-out passes when defenders swarm him at the rim. Paul's already recorded 22 bad-pass turnovers in 10 games, according to Basketball Reference, including this one:

Paul's struggles are symptomatic of an overall problem with the Rockets' offense, which has dropped from second to 24th in offensive rating. Paul and Harden remain prolific in isolation (1.03 and 1.20 points per play, respectively) but nothing else is working. Houston ranks in the bottom 10 in points per play when it comes to both spot-ups and pick-and-rolls, which has left both Paul and Harden to force more of their own shots.

Gordon can't hit

Eric Gordon was named Sixth Man of the Year for his marksmanship off the bench last season, but he's been way off to start the new season. The 30-year-old is shooting just 32 percent from the field and 23 percent from deep while taking the second-most shots on the team behind Harden.

Signs point to this being nothing more than a cold streak. Gordon's shooting 18 percent on wide-open threes after topping 40 percent on those same looks in four of his last five seasons. Those shots will fall eventually.

But like Paul, the more concerning trend is Gordon's inability to finish. Aside from restricted-area shots, Gordon's an awful 1-of-25 inside the paint and has already been blocked 12 times in nine games. His push shot is usually money, but he hasn't found his touch in the early going:

Houston badly needs Gordon to keep the ship afloat while its stars rest. Paul and Harden both have a history of wearing down during deep playoff runs, but right now both are top 15 in minutes played per game - partly because Gordon's been abysmal.

Where's the depth?

Rockets head coach Mike D'Antoni is notorious for running a tight rotation, but he can't even trot out five functional players right now.

Houston's wing depth is terrible. James Ennis was touted as the Ariza replacement, but he's averaging six points per game and can only score with wide-open threes. Michael Carter-Williams remains one of the worst players in the NBA. Gerald Green was a nice reclamation project last year, but he's turned back into a pumpkin. Clark is decent, but he's a rookie. Anthony might actually be the best player out of that bunch.

The frontcourt hasn't fared much better. Clint Capela and P.J. Tucker have been solid, but they have no help. A nagging injury that's sidelined 36-year-old Nene and the loss of Ryan Anderson in the offseason have combined to give way to Isaiah Hartenstein, who's putting on a terrible Tyler Hansbrough impression. Former No. 8 pick Marquese Chriss somehow can't crack the rotation, even under dire circumstances.

It all smacks of a lazy offseason by Morey, who essentially relied on Harden and Paul to make up for the loss of key role players. Morey built this season's Rockets on the cheap with veteran's minimum players, and he's getting what he paid for.