I’ve been watching sports for the better part of my five decades (and change) on this planet, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned (now more than ever, with free agency a thriving mechanism) it’s to avoid falling in love with players on your favorite teams. or perhaps, more accurately, make sure you fall in love with the RIGHT players.

Buying a player jersey can be an expensive endeavor. You want to mark sure to purchase the jersey of a player who will be around these here parts for a while. Nothing is guaranteed, but there are certain players across the Rockets, Texans, and Astros who are, for lack of a better term, untouchable. In other words, if an opposing GM calls up a Houston GM and asks about trading for said untouchable player, the response is an immediate hang-up. No good bye, no “nice chatting,” just a CLICK.

This has been a big topic of late with the Houston Rockets, as fans debate whether or not the team should make a big move for a star like Kevin Durant. A trade for Durant would likely cost the Rockets several of their young players and some draft picks. There is at least one Rocket that should elicit a “CLICK” from GM Rafael Stone.

Additionally, I see a half dozen other players across the Texans and Astros who fit that description. Here is my list of “untouchable” Houston athletes:

ROCKETS

AMEN THOMPSON, G/F
Thompson has emerged as a force in his second season in the league, quickly becoming one of the elite defenders in the league, and showing signs of becoming, at the very least, an above average offensive player. I’ve long held the beliefs that Thompson would not be moved in ANY deal, and that was actually confirmed by Tim MacMahon of ESPN in an article about the Rockets last week:

“The evaluation of the initial playoff experience for the Rockets’ rising young stars will be an important element of those internal discussions. A blockbuster trade would require the Rockets to give up some of that young talent, although Houston has made it known to other front offices that Thompson is considered untouchable.”
The Rockets will undoubtedly move on from one or more pieces of their young core, but Thompson will not be one of them.

TEXANS

CJ STROUD, QB
WILL ANDERSON, EDGE
DEREK STINGLEY, CB
The hardest asset to find in team sports is a franchise quarterback in the NFL. The Texans are one of the teams fortunate enough to have located theirs, as Stroud, the 2023 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, has been the leader of back to back AFC South champion teams. Super Bowls will be the ultimate measure of success, but Stroud flashes that potential, and there is zero discussion of his name in any trade. Anderson was the 2023 Defensive Rookie of the Year, and is the heartbeat of the Texans’ SWARM mentality on defense, while Stingley has ascended to the top of the list f cornerbacks in the NFL. Both of the positions played by Anderson and Stingley, respectively, are premium positions in the NFL.

ASTROS

YORDAN ALVAREZ, DH
HUNTER BROWN, SP
JOSE ALTUVE, 2B/LF
Alvarez is off to, easily, the slowest start of his big league career, as his batting average has hovered around .200 all season, and yet, I will blindly predict that he will be batting in the middle of the order from now until the end of the season. He’s that good, and he’s on one of the best contracts in baseball for another three seasons. Meanwhile, Brown has evolved into the next great Astros pitcher, and for the first month of this season, the best pitcher in baseball. He is under team control for three more seasons, and is thus, the most valuable asset you can have in sports — an ace pitcher on his rookie contract. Jose Altuve is starting to show signs of age, but he is still very much a plus hitter, and is such an institution here in town that the only way he would get moved is if HE requested it.

Listen to Sean Pendergast on SportsRadio 610 from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. weekdays. Also, follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/SeanTPendergast, on Instagram at instagram.com/sean.pendergast, and like him on Facebook at facebook.com/SeanTPendergast.