The Rockets improved their record from 22-60 to 41-41 in Ime Udoka's first season as head coach. That year-over-year jump would indicate Houston is ready to make another leap in the 2024-25 season.
While it would make sense for the Rockets to stand pat and let its young core blossom (see Thunder), a report from ESPN suggests that the franchise isn't willing to exercise as much patience.
According to Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo, the Rockets are aggressively in the trade market to acquire a superstar-level player.
"The Rockets are clearly in win-now mode and would love to add star power to their roster, with players such as Kevin Durant, Jimmy Butler, Mikal Bridges and Brandon Ingram as well as role players including Brook Lopez and Marcus Smart being some that other teams say the Rockets could have interest in targeting (with some names more far-fetched than others)."
The report added that the Rockets are shopping their No. 3 overall pick ahead of Wednesday's NBA Draft with hopes of landing a star player.
Houston's decision to potentially sell the farm for immediate success could backfire significantly. The franchise's four cornerstones are all under 22 — Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Jabari Smith Jr. and Amen Thompson — and could use another season of playing together to hit their collective stride.
Even if Houston retains some of its younger players, the formula of blending youth with veteran stars has rarely worked in the NBA. A few years ago, the Warriors tried to buck the trend by pairing James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody and Jordan Poole with their veteran core. Only two of those young players remain in Golden State, and Moody has yet to develop into a reliable player.
As the Celtics proved recently, there's no shortcut to success. It took Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum years of heartaches and losses to climb the mountaintop, but only after they were allowed to work through their growing pains. The Celtics' front office never succumbed to the temptation of trading one of them.
