The Houston Rockets were sent scrambling a bit prior to the start to this season when starting point guard Fred VanVleet went down with a fateful ACL tear.
Rockets coach Ime Udoka has moved Amen Thompson to the point guard spot, and although he has court vision, he’s playing out of position. At the NBA level, Thompson has thrived as a wing.
He’d benefit immensely from taking on more off-ball reps. Although the Rockets rank second in offensive efficiency and net rating.
So it’s not like he’s weighing the offense down or holding them back.
Granted, Reed Sheppard would be suited to play in more of an on-ball capacity, although he’s absolutely lit it up in his new role this season.
Could the Rockets make a major upgrade at the point guard spot this season? It certainly seems unlikely, at this point, but it’s possible.
Especially considering the LA Clippers’ current state of affairs. The team is 5-16 and heading nowhere fast.
Despite the hype they received heading into season just a few months ago. The signings of Chris Paul and Bradley Beal were viewed as splash moves.
Although neither will be contributing for the team the rest of the way, as Beal suffered a season-ending injury early in the season and Paul was abruptly sent away from the team.
For one of the league’s older teams, the inevitable thought is to blow the roster up and get draft picks and get younger players to build for the future.
If this happens, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard would seemingly be names that hold value as trade chips. In such a scenario, Harden could be a solution to one of the Rockets’ problems, in theory, as explained by Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.
“Harden would surely have potential suitors on the trade market before the Feb. 6 deadline if he were to be made available or asked for a trade, and it wouldn’t be crazy to believe he would hold a desire to return to the Houston Rockets.
After all, Harden and Kevin Durant continue to hold a strong relationship with one another, and it was neither of their faults that them teaming up on the Brooklyn Nets with Kyrie Irving didn’t work out. Such a scenario is interesting to theorize about, given the Rockets’ financial standing and not wanting to trade Fred VanVleet, but it’s clear that the Rockets could use a star guard like Harden to make a title push.”
The Rockets had an opportunity to reunite with Harden, one of the greatest players in the history of the franchise, in 2023 but opted to sign VanVleet instead.
Harden is averaging 26.5 points, 8.4 assists, 5.5 rebounds, 43.8 percent from the field, 37 percent from deep, 90.2 percent from the foul line and 62.6 percent true shooting.