Former All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony is finally set to hit the free agent market after the Oklahoma City Thunder moved him to the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday where he was bought out from the final year of his deal.

This has seemingly put the Houston Rockets as the perceived favorites to land the 34-year-old once he's able to negotiate a deal. It is something that even newly-minted Washington Wizards center Dwight Howard sees happening as he stated during an appearance on ESPN's “SportsNation” on Friday afternoon.

The Rockets appear to be the most logical choice for Anthony at this point in time as there is a strong need to address the small forward position with both Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah A Moute each deciding to depart in free agency. Houston has brought in help at that spot with James Ennis, but Anthony could provide some significant offensive impact that the team is looking to garner.

He is a proven scorer that has shown the ability to generate his own offense, which could become a key aspect for what he brings to the table for the Rockets. There will be a slide down in terms of the defensive pressure that the team with him in the fold, but should make them a more formidable offense. In his lone campaign with the Thunder, Anthony averaged 6.2 points on a career-low 40.4 percent shooting from the field and 35.7 percent from 3-point range along with 5.8 rebounds in 32.1 minutes per contest while starting in all 78 games played.

Given that he has seen his production continue to dip over the last couple of years, the Rockets may look to move him around with both the starting and bench unit during the course of the game to maximize his offensive ability. Nonetheless, it is becoming clear around the league that Anthony looks to be on his way to Houston.