The Houston Rockets have been able to overcome the loss of their starting point guard before the season started. Fred VanVleet tore his ACL before the season, which was a huge blow to the team. He is a big part of what they do on defense.
Without VanVleet, the Rockets have been one of the best teams in the NBA. Houston sits at third in the Western Conference standings, even without VanVleet running the show. They have the fourth-best offense in the league, mainly because VanVleet wasn’t an efficient shooter.
Reed Sheppard has been able to fill in, getting more minutes as a second-year player. Still, it’s unclear if he is he point guard of the future due to his deficiencies on defense and his lack of play-making. A trade proposal from Bleacher Report would fix that issue.
GettyCeltics guard Payton Pritchard celebrates. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Rockets Add Point Guard to Address Issues in Trade Idea
Here is the full trade proposal:
Tari Eason, Jae’Sean Tate, and a 2029 first-round pick (via DAL or PHO) to the Boston Celtics for Payton Pritchard.
While this proposal seems a little steep for the Rockets, it’s the price they would need to pay to entice the Celtics to part ways with Pritchard. Boston is third in the Eastern Conference standings, so they would need a big proposal to part ways with one of their starters.
Pritchard would fit perfectly in Houston. Even though he’s on the smaller side as a point guard, he plays extremely hard. His ability to score and draw defenders would help the offense be even better and not have to rely on grabbing every offensive rebound.
Eason is a solid rotation player for the Rockets, but the Celtics would not say yes to this deal without him. His ability to switch on defense is very valuable, especially for someone coming off the bench. The future first-round pick is also a big prize.
GettyHouston Rockets forward Kevin Durant drives the ball. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
The Rockets Might Not Make a Trade at the Deadline
Of course, there is a good chance that Houston decides to just hold steady at the trade deadline. They have a top-five offense and a top-five defense, so there isn’t much of a reason to make a move. Any move they make would likely affect one of those statistics.
Staying put at the trade deadline is what would likely give the Rockets the best chance to win in the playoffs. Adding Pritchard is one of the few players that Houston could add who wouldn’t drastically affect their standing as a top team in the league.
The issue that Houston is facing is that the Rockets used a lot of their trade assets over the summer to bring in Kevin Durant. Houston doesn’t make a move like that if they don’t believe that they have a realistic shot to win the title with the current roster.
Of course, they thought they would have VanVleet as the starting point guard when they traded for Durant.
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