Shawn Marion names the must-trade player for Houston Rockets to win Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes.
The Houston Rockets finished as the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference during the 2024-25 NBA season.
Naturally, the fanbase expected the team to make a deep playoff run. However, the Rockets’ journey was cut short by the Golden State Warriors in the opening round of the postseason.
As a result, many are expecting the Rockets to break their young core in the offseason in hopes for acquiring Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty ImagesShawn Marion wants the Rockets to trade Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun
Considering Antetokounmpo is one of the best players in the league, trading for him won’t be cheap by any means.
Most experts believe any trade talks will include Rockets’ Alperen Sengun to intrigue the Bucks. In addition, former NBA player Shawn Marion believes Houston also needs to throw Jalen Green into the mix in a potential trade for Giannis.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if they throw Jalen Green in that deal. You talking about getting Giannis at 30-years-old, trying to capitalize on the window he got being in his prime,” Marion stated.
For reference, Antetokounmpo is coming on the heels of averaging 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game as he dragged the Bucks to a 48-34 record in the regular season.
What pieces should the Rockets keep if they succeed in trading for Antetokounmpo
Being one of the youngest teams in the NBA, the Rockets have the advantage of tweaking their core to their liking even after trading for someone of Antetokounmpo’s caliber.
Keeping that in mind, Marion revealed which players the Rockets should keep on the roster as they are expected to go after Giannis.
“If you can make that happen, get him down there, you can find some other pieces to put around him, keep that veteran [Fred] VanVleet down there, keep [Amen] Thompson… they can make something happen down there, they were really good this year,” Marion continued.
He concluded: “I was optimistic they could beat Golden State [Warriors] but they don’t have no closer.”
Although the Rockets-Warriors series was decided in Game 7, Houston should have never allowed the Dubs to stay this close to them in the matchup.
As Marion stated, if someone like Giannis joins the roster, they will have a veteran superstar who could close games for the team.