Houston Rockets FP

Welcome to Houston, Dorian Finney-Smith 🚀 The Houston Rockets have officially signed free agent Dorian Finney-Smith to a 4-year deal worth $53M, per Shams Charania 🔥 The 6’7”, two-way forward shot 41.1% on 5.0 three-point attempts per game last season and has a career playoff three-point percentage of 41.2% 🎯 Thoughts? 💬

🚨 KEVIN DURANT TRADED TO HOUSTON 🚨 The Rockets have officially landed Kevin Durant in a trade with the Phoenix Suns per Shams Charania sending Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Pick 10 and 5 second round picks to Phoenix 🤯 Drop your immediate thoughts in the comments 💬

Big changes coming in Houston? 🚀 Despite falling to the Warriors in the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs, the Rockets go into this offseason ahead of schedule, finishing 2nd in a loaded Western conference, armed with a promising young core, a robust collection of draft capital, and a strong defensive identity. The Rockets have already found themselves in trade rumors, specifically Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo, who are expected to be the two superstars potentially available for trade this summer. Shams Charania reports that the Rockets and Durant have “mutual interest” though Marc Stein says that the Rockets are “unlikely” to pursue a trade for KD as he is not on the same timeline as the young core. Last week on ESPN, Brian Windhorst listed the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs as teams to watch in a potential Giannis trade, should the former Finals MVP become available on the market. ESPN’s Tim MacMahon wrote last week that Stone, Udoka and Fertitta are aligned in the ambition of allowing the young core to grow together, though it is anticipated that there will be internal discussions at a minimum regarding potential star trade pursuits. It is expected that the Rockets and Fred VanVleet will work on a new multi-year contract rather than opting into his 1yr/$44M team option, whilst Houston is also tasked with re-signing Steven Adams who is an unrestricted free agent. Houston also holds the 9th projected pick in this year’s NBA Draft (via the Phoenix Suns) which has a 17.3% chance of jumping into the top 4 and a 3.8% chance of landing at number 1. The draft lottery will be held on Monday 12th May. One final note is that both Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason are eligible for contract extensions. Both players have been important 2-way contributors to the Rockets since being drafted in 2022 and are likely to be extended. What do you think the Rockets should do this offseason? Would you like to see Houston make a splash for a star player on the trade market or run it back with the same group? Drop your thoughts in the comments 💬

Devin Booker to Houston? 👀 The Phoenix Suns are the 12th seed in the Western Conference and look as though their championship hopes have come to an end, just less than 2 years after trading for Kevin Durant. If they were to pivot into a rebuild this coming offseason, the Rockets are the only team who can offer them a clear path to do so, with Houston owning their 1st-round picks in 2025, 2027 & 2029. The Rockets acquired these picks in a deal with Brooklyn last offseason, which returned the Nets their 2025 & 2026 picks, and was essentially the Rockets betting on the Suns downfall. Now, the Rockets are in prime position to land Devin Booker should he request a trade from Phoenix, or if the Suns made the decision to rebuild and start over. What do you think about the Rockets potentially pursuing a trade for Devin Booker this offseason? Drop your thoughts in the comments 💬

De’Aaron Fox Houston Homecoming? 🚀 The Houston Rockets are reportedly monitoring De’Aaron Fox’s situation in Sacramento per Forbes NBA reporter Evan Sidery. De’Aaron Fox’s agent, Rich Paul, met with the Kings’ front office in recent weeks to discuss their future plans of building around him, per The Athletic’s Sam Amick. Fox declined an extension in Sacramento last offseason and stated on Draymond Green’s podcast that he isn’t signing a new deal unless he believes the team is in position to win. Just this weekend, Sacramento fired coach Mike Brown following a 5-game losing streak which has the Kings in 12th place in the Western Conference. This puts pressure on the Kings, who are currently out of a play-in spot, to either find a trade to massively improve the team, or to trade Fox and rebuild. The Rockets aren’t the only team monitoring Fox, though. Sam Amick also reported that the Spurs are planning to pursue Fox should he become available. The Rockets have as good of an offer as anyone in the NBA with multiple young players and draft picks available to trade in a potential deal. What do you think about the Rockets potentially pursuing a trade for De’Aaron Fox? Drop your thoughts in the comments 💬

Paul George to Houston? 👀 The Rockets are “big game hunting” and have real interest in Paul George if he opts into his $48.8M player option and requests a trade per Mike Scotto of HoopsHype. The 9x All-Star could opt in and be traded by this weekend per Brian Windhorst. George reportedly doesn’t have a big list of suitors if he were to decline his player option and test free agency as teams like the Sixers, who have the cap space to sign him, are not as interested as previously implied per Shams Charania. This could lead to a scenario where PG opts into his player option and then requests a trade to a team on his list of preferred destinations, similarly to how Chris Paul got to Houston in 2017. Any team that trades for him would likely have a big extension in place upon his arrival. Paul George already has existing relationships with Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green, who both appeared on his podcast. The 9x All-Star also made it clear on his podcast that he is not “chasing a championship” and is looking for a team that plays the “right style of basketball” which makes the Rockets a suitor. In this scenario, the Rockets could offer a solid package including Dillon Brooks, Steven Adams & Jeff Green to salary match, who can all help the Clippers keep contending with James Harden and Kawhi Leonard, as well as 1-2 first round picks. What do you think about Paul George to the Rockets? Drop your thoughts in the comments 💬

Reed Sheppard to Houston? 🚀 The Rockets landed the 3rd pick in the 2024 NBA Draft in Sunday’s lottery after the Brooklyn Nets pick, which was previously acquired in the James Harden trade, jumped into the top 4, despite being projected 9th overall. The immediate consensus pick for the Rockets is Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard. The 6’2 sharpshooter averaged 12.5 PPG, 4.1 RPG & 4.5 APG this season along with 2.5 SPG and 0.7 BPG, shooting an incredible 52.1% from three point range. Although slightly undersized, Sheppard makes up for it with his lights out shooting, pesky defense and high IQ. The Rockets desperately need shooting around star big man Alperen Sengun and pairing up these two would be a seamless fit. What do you think about Reed Sheppard’s fit in Houston? Who would you select with the 3rd pick if you were the Rockets? Drop your thoughts in the comments 💬

Rockets Trade Deadline Preview 🚀 We are officially 1 week away from the NBA trade deadline and Houston “armed with a profusion of young talent and draft capital” have “quietly repositioned their internal strategy” in recent weeks. “Everything is on the table in terms of potential moves they can make to go get high-level talent that is ready to win immediately” per Shams Charania, Kelly Iko & Sam Amick of The Athletic. The Nets are currently being forced into mediocrity as the Rockets control their draft capital for the next 4 seasons. It’s assumed the only way Brooklyn would deal Mikal Bridges is if they received their picks back from Houston, allowing them to bottom out for high lottery picks and rebuild. However, recent reports from both the NY Post and The Athletic say the Nets remain adamant they’re not moving Bridges even if it were to Houston. In other news, the Rockets are reportedly interested in Portland’s Malcolm Brogdon and Robert Williams per Jake Fischer, Shams Charania, Kelly Iko & Sam Amick. Brogdon would provide some consistent production at the guard spot whether it be starting or coming off the bench. Williams, who remains out for the season with a knee injury, could be a fantastic buy-low move as the future backup 5 to Alperen Şengün. Other trade targets listed in yesterday’s article from Shams, Iko and Amick include Clint Capela, Kelly Olynyk & Andre Drummond. Also in the report, Rockets forward Jae’Sean Tate, who league sources said is attracting interest from the likes of Boston and Phoenix, is movable in potential deals. Lots of news here… what would you do at the trade deadline if you had control of the Rockets? Drop your thoughts in the comments and let us know which player(s) you think the Rockets should target 💬

Rockets Roster Review 2023/24 🔥 The Houston Rockets will face the Orlando Magic tonight in their 2023/24 NBA season opener, showcasing the new look roster following a busy offseason. Guards: Fred VanVleet (6’0) Jalen Green (6’6) Amen Thompson (6’7) Aaron Holiday (6’0) Victor Oladipo (6’4) Wings: Dillon Brooks (6’7) Tari Eason (6’8) Cam Whitmore (6’7) Jae’Sean Tate (6’5) Reggie Bullock (6’6) Bigs: Jabari Smith Jr. (6’11) Alperen Sengun (6’11) Jeff Green (6’8) Jock Landale (6’11) Boban Marjanovic (7’4) What do you think about the Rockets offseason? Drop your player stat predictions and team record predictions in the comments 💬

Rockets Basketball is back 🚀 The Rockets open their pre-season campaign tonight against the Indiana Pacers and will debut their new look starting 5 of Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun. Leave your thoughts going into this season in the comments and drop your record predictions 💬

Rockets 2023 Offseason Review 🚀 The Rockets were one of the big winners of this year’s NBA Draft, landing OTE’s Amen Thompson at pick 4 and Villanova’s Cam Whitmore at pick 20. Thompson has the potential to be the face of the franchise one day with his elite playmaking and athleticism, whilst Whitmore has shown flashes of star potential at just 19 years old and was a projected top 6 pick going into the draft. Replacing coach Stephen Silas with Ime Udoka should play a big part in helping the Rockets finish with more wins next season. Along with Udoka came former Celtics assistant coach Ben Sullivan, among others, as well as Tiago Splitter. Splitter was playing for the Spurs when Ime was working under Gregg Popovich on the Spurs and was also an assistant alongside Udoka for the Nets in 2021. The Rockets made some significant moves in free agency, signing Fred VanVleet to a 3-year max contract, with a team option in year 3, and Dillon Brooks to a fully guaranteed 4-year deal worth up to $90M. The Rockets desperately needed to use their cap space on veterans to help develop their young core and that’s exactly what they did. Other notable pickups included Jock Landale, Jeff Green and Aaron Holiday. The worst part of the Rockets offseason were the trades. Houston dealt a lot of its young talent including KJ Martin, TyTy Washington, Josh Christopher and Usman Garuba for essentially nothing in return. The idea was reportedly to create cap space to bring in Brook Lopez in free agency, but he ultimately ended up re-signing with Milwaukee instead. The Rockets’ offseason was definitely controversial having traded away some fan favorites and handing out huge contracts to VanVleet and Brooks. However, the Rockets did maintain their young core, improve their coaching staff, draft best available and add veterans in free agency. Whether you agree with the signings or not, there is no doubt that the future is bright in Houston. What grade would you give the Rockets for each part of the offseason? Checkout our reviews in the pinned comment below 💬

Amen Thompson to Houston? 🚀 The NBA Draft is officially 1 month away and with Houston’s pick falling in the draft lottery for the third consecutive year, the Rockets will be selecting with the fourth overall pick this summer. The consensus number 4 player in the 2023 class is Overtime Elite guard Amen Thompson. The 6’7 point guard averaged 16.4 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 5.9 APG and 2.3 SPG across 16 regular season games and 17.2 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 9.2 APG and 1.6 SPG across 5 playoff games for the City Reapers. Amen is a generational athlete with an explosive first step and reported 44” vertical leap. He has great size for a point guard at 6’7 with a 7’0 wingspan and is someone who sees the floor exceptionally well, making difficult reads look easy. Thompson also shines on the defensive end, using his length to hunt in the passing lanes and block shots, and big frame to stay tight with opposing players both on and off-ball. However, like all 20 year olds, he doesn’t come without flaws. The biggest weakness in Amen’s game is his shooting. He connected on just 25% of his threes this season and has unorthodox mechanics, also hitting only 66% of his free throws. Other pre-draft concerns include the level of competition he faced and turnover rate. Overall, it’s clear Amen Thompson has the potential to be a star one day if he can really develop his shooting. However, it may take a while to adjust to the NBA after facing lesser competition in the Overtime Elite league for the past two seasons. What do you think about the Rockets potentially selecting Amen Thompson in the 2023 NBA Draft? Drop your thoughts in the comments 💬