The Houston Rockets have had quite the busy offseason, headlined by their trade for disgruntled Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant in an attempt to turn their team into a legitimate contender in the Western Conference. Houston is now less than six weeks away from opening night, when Durant will have to watch his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder, hang their first NBA championship banner.
The Rockets' roster is essentially filled out as the season nears, but recently, a former member of the team detailed how he almost reunited with the organization this offseason before things fell apart.
“I was in Houston working out with the Rockets for the last two, three weeks,” said former NBA point guard Patrick Beverley during a Twitch stream with N3on, per Basket News. “I was really close. But with the cap, they don't have a lot of space. They can’t really guarantee, because I think they first apron. But I was really, really close.”
Patrick Beverley was on the Rockets for several years during the mid-2010s, helping them make a run to the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2015 season. He spent last year playing overseas and last played in the NBA for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Can the Rockets win it all?
The Houston Rockets surprised many this past NBA season by securing the number two overall seed in the Western Conference, led by an elite defense and some savvy coaching from Ime Udoka.
Unfortunately, all of the skeptics about Houston's ability to produce offense in the half court during a playoff setting turned out to be correct, with Jalen Green crashing and burning in spectacular fashion during the Rockets' first round loss to the Golden State Warriors.
Green went on to become the main piece of the deal that brought Durant to Houston, and now with a legitimate go-to scorer who can get a bucket when the offense breaks down, Houston is hoping that this is the year they will finally re-enter the NBA title discussion after several years of being on the outside looking in.
Houston's season is set to begin on October 21 in Oklahoma City.
