The Houston Rockets were taken out of the playoffs in the first round by the Lakers. It was a disappointing finish to a once-promising year. Falling to an undermanned Los Angeles squad is especially disappointing. Now, changes must be made.
Houston will have an entire offseason to improve the roster. After trading for Kevin Durant in the offseason, the Rockets will look to make more moves this summer. There are three trade targets that they will likely go after, according to Bleacher Report.
They believe that Houston will go after three premier players, including the top player available on the market.
GettyMilwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo looks to pass the ball. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
The Houston Rockets are Projected to Go After Three Star Trade Targets
Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report predicts the Rockets to go after three targets. He predicts the top target to be Giannis Antetokounmpo, which makes sense. Antetokounmpo is going to be the top player available on the market, and several teams will make trade offers to the Bucks.
“In terms of play style, he doesn’t seem like the automatic solution to Houston’s problems. If you’re the Rockets, though, banking on the collective problem-solving ability of Antetokounmpo and Durant feels like a better bet than hoping this young core can figure things out on the fly,” Buckley wrote.
If Houston fails to land Antetokounmpo, they could pivot into pursuing Tyler Herro. The Heat guard would alleviate some of the scoring problems that plagued them in the postseason, especially at the guard spot.
“Herro sits awfully high within the realm of high-end perimeter producers, and he could be more efficient than ever if slotted into a secondary role alongside a scorer of Kevin Durant’s ilk. And that’s saying quite a lot since even without that kind of help he just posted an uber-efficient 48/37.8/91.7 shooting slash,” Buckley mentioned.
The third trade target he thinks they could go after is Ryan Rollins, who is a much less popular name. Still, Rollins was solid for Milwaukee. However, it seems unlikely that the Bucks would part ways with both Antetokounmpo and Rollins. Rollins is someone they can build around.
GettyMiami Heat guard Tyler Herro shoots the ball.(Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
Houston has Enough Assets to Make a Massive Trade
The Rockets have enough assets to pull off a huge trade if they desire. In fact, other than Oklahoma City and San Antonio, they might have the best collections of assets in the NBA. That makes them an attractive trade partner, so it would be shocking if they were not able to get anything done.
In the playoffs, Houston had just the 12th-best offense out of 16 playoff teams. Adding players who can alleviate their scoring problems is going to be the key to them succeeding next season. Neither the Thunder nor the Spurs is going anywhere next season, and both of them have a shot to win the title this year.
The Rockets will be a team to watch when the offseason arrives.
Rockets Predicted to Chase Three Premier Offseason Trade Targets