The NBA Trade Deadline is coming up and the Houston Rockets are going to move on from a few guys to try to get some draft picks and young talent to help speed up their rebuild process. We saw them trade away P.J. Tucker and James Harden last season, as the team decided to focus and shift towards a major rebuild.
Houston is still not in a position to compete anytime soon, but they do have some young talent. Bringing in a few guys who can be surrounded around some of the young players that they have could certainly speed this process up. Houston has some veterans on their team who have proven throughout their NBA careers that they can be more than serviceable and help a team win a title. Some contending teams are going to be on the phone to try to get some of the Rockets players, so let's take a look at three guys the Rockets should think about trading.
Rockets NBA Trade Deadline
3. Daniel Theis
Daniel Theis is an interesting one for the Rockets to think about trading. With him being almost 30 years old, and not necessarily being the guy that they need at the moment, it could be the right time to move him.
He's definitely been a great player in terms of what the Rockets need because he is a serviceable center and those are always valuable in the NBA. He's also on a favorable deal as he's only making about $2 million per year. It would make sense that the Rockets decide to keep him just because of that alone.
If they do decide to get rid of him, they could get a decent return back and potentially even some more draft picks which would be perfect for them. A team that is in a rebuild process is always looking for draft picks and that's exactly what he could get back.
With Christian Wood saying multiple times that he does not want to leave the Rockets organization anytime soon, he is clearly the center of the future so there is really no need to have somebody who is 30 years old and can get a decent return.
2. Eric Gordon
Eric Gordon is going to be a huge name at the NBA Trade Deadline. He has been with the Rockets for most of his career and has found a lot of success with them. Gordon is 32 years old but he has shown that he still has the ability to score as he's averaging 15.1 points per game. He could be exactly what a contending team needs coming off the bench.
Teams like the Milwaukee Bucks and Chicago Bulls are going to be heavily interested in him because they need somebody who can run the second unit while also scoring. The only issue is, Gordon makes $18 million in three years. It's not that he's necessarily on a bad contract, but it is not a favorable one in terms of being able to move him. This could be the issue that the Rockets run into. It might be time to move on from him because he is 32 years old and they have Jalen Green who is going to be the guard of the future.
He has been in Houston since 2016 and was a major reason why they had so much success during the James Harden era. Some contending teams might think about overpaying for him because he is still a very good player and one who could help a team secure a championship. Putting Eric Gordon on the court for 20-plus minutes a night in the playoffs is never going to be bad. Teams are certainly going to be calling the Rockets to see what they want for Gordon, but it could be tough due to his contract.
1. John Wall
Houston is in a very difficult situation with John Wall. He's making $44 million in two years. This isn't exactly the same John Wall that we used to see in Washington as he is 31 years old and has dealt with some injuries throughout his career. Factor in that he has also not played this season due to some issues with the front office, and teams might be very hesitant to bring him in.
Some contending teams could still see him as that guy who can come in and score 15-plus points a night so there could be some value in the trade. The issue is unless Houston is going to go for a buyout option, no teams are really going to be able to match their salary as it wouldn't make sense from their standpoint.
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