7/8/19

By: @TeamOutOfSight

The Thunder seem to be headed toward a rebuild after Paul George demanded a trade to join 2-time Finals MVP, Kawhi Leonard, on the LA Clippers. As we all know, in 2016 KD told Westbrook he was staying and then he left to win 2 titles with the Warriors. Paul George felt as if he could not win a championship with Westbrook, so he left like Kevin Durant did. Recently, we heard that Russell Westbrook wanted out of OKC after PG left, so it’s probably likely that there will be a trade that deals Russell Westbrook to a new team. The problem is, finding a team that wants the explosive star and being able to have the cap space to fit him could be tricky, for almost any team. Case in point: the Houston Rockets

Can The Rockets land Russell?

Adding  Russell Westbrook would definitely be a gutsy move for one of the NBA’s bolder GMs, Daryl Morey.

The biggest problem for Houston is the contract of the Rockets point guard, Chris Paul, who is still due $125 million over the next three years. You would think any Rockets trade for Westbrook would have to have CP3 leaving H-Town, though MacMahon noted that might be the case.

Despite that, it’s hard to imagine that the Rockets would want three point guards with cap hits exceeding $38 million — Westbrook, Paul and James Harden — on their roster.

The Rockets Tried To Add Jimmy Butler Too:

This is the second over-the-top aggressive plan from the Rockets to come to light this offseason. They were reported earlier in being interested in landing Jimmy Butler in a sign-and-trade, who opted to join the Heat in South Beach. ESPN even reported that the Rockets couldn’t even get an interview from Jimmy Butler, a Houston native. Among the possible players to trade for Butler were apparently Capela and Eric Gordon, so you would definitely imagine those players are on the table for Russ as well. It’s much of a peculiar idea though, as the Rockets probably aren’t going to want to give up much if they’re taking on Westbrook’s huge cap hit.

Putting Westbrook on the Rockets would also be quite entertaining for a team with reported locker-room issues, though it would clearly be a cool reunion for Harden and Westbrook, who were teammates on the Thunder and appeared in the 2012 finals together, both of their only appearances in their respective careers. Who knows? Maybe a trade is made and the duo of Westbrook and Harden could operate better than that of CP3 and Harden.