NEWSLETTER
Unlike the Chicago Bulls, the Houston Rockets want to make noise at the NBA trade deadline.
According to The Athletic, the Rockets are prepared to officially shift their mindset from rebuild to contention over the next week or so. Both head coach Ime Udoka and the front office want to use their stock of first-round picks and young players to go “star-hunting,” as The Athletic reports that nearly “everything is on the table” when it comes to trade talks.
The two All-Star-caliber players most notably on the market are both Dejounte Murray and Zach LaVine. With that in mind, I immediately expected to see the Rockets tied to both players. But the opposite occurred. As Shams Charania, Sam Amick, and Kelly Iko outlined Houston’s preferred path forward, they explicitly stated that neither Murray nor LaVine is on the organization’s radar (emphasis mine):
“Houston has been pursuing upgrades to the roster, searching for another All-Star-caliber type who fits the two-way mold Udoka is looking for, and the organization has the available resources to do so. The Rockets have four first-round picks eligible to be traded — two via Brooklyn in 2024 and 2026 and their own in 2028 and 2030.
Names that have been linked with them as the trade market has developed — Atlanta’s Dejounte Murray and Chicago’s Zach Lavine — don’t appear to be enticing to the Rockets.“
You can read The Athletic’s full report here.
The Bulls would surely love it if the organization’s mindset changed near the deadline. As noted above, the franchise has some seriously attractive assets at its disposal. Not only do they have several intriguing draft picks courtesy of a struggling Brooklyn Nets team, but they also have high-level prospects like Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, Amen Thompson, and Cam Whitemore. And, unlike the Pistons, The Athletic reports that the Rockets would be willing to move on from one of these youngsters if it mean landing a star.
While they clearly aren’t too interested, I do wonder if the reality of the limited market could make them a little more open to the idea of adding LaVine’s services. I especially wonder if the Bulls adding someone like Alex Caruso into the equation could stir up even more interest. He feels like a perfect Udoka player, as well as a wonderful utility player to pair with a potential backcourt of LaVine and Fred VanVleet. To be clear, I fully recognize that this would be *a lot* of money to move around in a mid-season deal. But, hey, my job is to just pitch bad fake trades and get mad when they don’t happen!
Rockets Want Andre Drummond?
While the Rockets apparently aren’t interested in doing business with Zach LaVine, they have reportedly had their eye on Andre Drummond.
The Athletic specifically named multiple big men as possible back-ups the organization could target over the next week. Alperen Sengun has put together a breakout season at the starting position, but the Rockets could benefit from more physical center play and rim protection.
“The Rockets, league sources said, are also exploring the center market, looking to bolster their rim protection. According to those sources, Houston is keeping tabs on Utah’s Kelly Olynyk, Atlanta’s Clint Capela, Chicago’s Andre Drummond and Portland’s Robert Williams III (who has fans throughout the current coaching staff) among others,” The Athletic shared.
This isn’t the first time that Drummond has been linked to the Rockets. I wrote about the possibly fruitful backup big man market earlier this month, referencing Jake Fischer’s report that linked Drummond to several teams, including Houston. Does this mean a deal is imminent? Not at all. But it’s always noteworthy when we see multiple sources connecting the same dots. This only further underscores Houston’s interest in Drummond, and I sure hope the Bulls are willing to hear them out on a potential deal.
Even if we’re merely talking about a couple of second-round picks, Chicago should be considering all avenues when it comes to someone like Drummond. He’s put together a really strong year and has even shown signs of starting potential again. With that being the case, the chance of his signing a multi-year deal above the minimum elsewhere in free agency is high. The Bulls just locked Nikola Vucevic up on a three-year deal, so taking pretty much whatever they can get for Drummond sounds like good business.
Unfortunately, good and business haven’t been used in the same sentence often when talking about this franchise, so we’ll see what happens. What’s currently in the tea leaves isn’t promising …
