The Houston Rockets were obviously was one star away from beating the Golden State Warriors in the first round and who knows how far can they get if they came out of it.
But their lack of a go-to guy stalled their offense.
Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale proposed a trade that will give them exactly what they need without breaking the bank.
Here is Favale’s trade proposal:
Phoenix Suns Receive: Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., No. 10 pick, 2026 first-round pick (their own, via Washington), 2027 first-round pick (their own, via Houston)
Houston Rockets Receive: Kevin Durant
Washington Wizards Receive: Jock Landale (into Jonas Valančiūnas traded player exception), No. 29 pick, 2029 first-round pick (least favorable of Cleveland, Minnesota and Utah)
“The Rockets reportedly aren’t interested in Durant because he’ll be entering his age-37 season next year. That makes some sense if they think landing him requires them to empty their asset armory.
“This trade wouldn’t do that. Houston has no room for the No. 10 pick in its rotation, and the extension-eligible Smith has a murky future with the Rockets if they’re married to both Alperen Şengün and Amen Thompson. Tacking on an additional first-rounder could be overkill, but the Rockets would also be getting off Green’s three-year, $105.3 million deal, which is aging poorly,” Favale wrote.
Green was flop in the Rockets’ first-round loss as he only had one great shooting night with his 38-point performance in Game 2 win. He shot no better than 37.5% in the other six games and had four single-digit scoring games, including an 8-point dud in Game 7.
Rockets Preached Patience Despite Suns’ Kevin Durant Offer
Getty Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns dunks against Dillon Brooks of the Houston Rockets.
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reported in March that the Phoenix Suns “initiated” trade talks with the Rockets at the trade deadline.
A Suns source told MacMahon that “when you’re not winning and you’re not winning the way you want, you’ve got to look at everything,” which included trading Durant.
“For us with [Durant], it was, how do we make sure that we’re optimizing Devin and building to make you successful now, but also in the future. And Kevin’s had an amazing year. He’s had an amazing stretch here. He’s playing really, really good basketball, but there’s always been a conversation with everyone on our team, minus Devin Booker. As we talked about it, when teams call us because they’re interested because it’s Kevin Durant, we’re not in a position not to look at everything. We have to be creative,” the Suns’ source told ESPN.
The Rockets did not ultimately pursue Durant because they wanted to see how their young core played in the playoffs. With a clear need of a go-to-guy after their first-round exit, Durant fits the bill. It is still unclear if the Rockets will revisit those Durant trade talks.
MacMahon added that Durant and his business manager and agent, Rick Kleiman, will be consulted “on any trade discussions involving him this summer.”
Rockets Have Reservations on KD Deal
The Rockets were one of the teams who had mutual interest with Durant at the trade deadline, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported in April.
“Back at the NBA trade deadline, there was a list of teams that there was mutual interest with Kevin Durant,” Charania said on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday. “Those teams, from my understanding, are Minnesota, that’s New York, Houston, San Antonio and Miami.
“Those are the types of teams, from my understanding, that had interest then, and I expect them all to be in the mix this offseason. But the biggest thing to keep an eye on for all NBA fans and fans of those teams is: How does your team finish in the playoffs? How do the playoffs go? Because that’s going to really determine who feels like they’re a Kevin Durant away.”
But the Rockets continue to have second thoughts about a Durant trade, according to Kelly Iko and Sam Amick of The Athletic.
“While Durant is widely seen as the most attainable of that group, and he is known to be very interested in playing in Houston, team sources said the Rockets still have significant reservations about that possible partnership, in large part, because Durant’s age (36) would be so out of sync with their younger timeline,” Iko and Amick wrote.
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