The Houston Rockets are clearly one of the more disappointing teams in 2016 but are they one transaction away from salvaging the season?
The Rockets reached the Western Conference Finals and fell to eventual champions Golden State Warriors. Since then, the two teams went on to diverging paths: the Warriors have become invincible and the Rockets became a laughing stock.
However, Rockets GM Daryl Morey is not one to sit down and wait for the situation to correct itself. He will definitely be one of the buyers before the trade deadline, as ESPN Insider surmised.
Insider Kevin Pelton also identified one of their trade targets: Goran Dragic of the Miami Heat.
"A second playmaker to go with James Harden remains Houston GM Daryl Morey's white whale," Pelton said. "The Rockets hoped Ty Lawson would fill that role, but the offseason trade for Lawson has backfired because he has been ineffective both playing with Harden and as a lead ballhandler."
Pelton warns that if ever the trade happens, the transition will still not be seamless, but would still be the right move.
"Though playing Dragic with Harden would create some of the same issues Dragic currently faces next to Dwyane Wade with the Miami Heat, his up-tempo style would be ideal for the team's second unit," Pelton concluded.
Dragic is not having the best of times in Miami as he anticipated when he re-signed with the team that traded for him. The Sun Sentinel's Ira Winderman has contended that the Heat is not maximizing Dragic.
"You can say all you want about Dragic, about deferring, about staying in his lane, about sacrificing," Winderman said. "And none of it makes sense for the reason that this is a player the Heat acquired at the cost of two potential lottery picks, while paying a near-maximum salary. That does not sound like someone you ride hard early and ask to take a back seat later in games."
Will the Houston Rockets do a better job of utilizing the player they once had? Will the Heat give them that chance-and for what price? Stay tuned.
