Houston Rockets are in the news for all the wrong reasons. After reports revealed Russell Westbrook has requested for a trade, more and more stories started circulating highlighting deep internal issues.
Stephen A. Smith has now revealed that along with Westbrook, Harden could also leave the franchise. In fact, Stephen A., believes there is more than a 50% of chance of the Rockets losing both their superstars.
“Now that you know that Russ doesn’t wanna be there [Houston Rockets]. And you’re questioning the level of compensation that you can get for Russell Westbrook. As a result of that, the mentality is we might have to move James Harden.
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“Because that’s the guy that is just a juggernaut offensively and we can ask for the House in return for him because there will be teams lined up to get their hands on James Harden… It’s a virtual guarantee that one of them is going to be gone. And a better than 50% shot that both will be gone.”
Ever since James Harden joined the Rockets, he has been the leader for them. Unfortunately, the regular-season success has never been carried to the playoffs. Each time the Rockets looked certain of crossing the last hurdle, they would choke.
Perhaps calling it quits on the current experiment would indeed turn out to be the best decision for the franchise moving forward.
Should the Houston Rockets start from the scratch?
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As of now, the Rockets still have some time to possibly convince the two superstars to play together. However, even if one of them decides to leave, it will hamper their championship ambitions.
Next season, not only will the Western Conference get stronger, but the league as a whole will be better. Losing one or two of their superstars will put the Rockets in the middle of the pack. Thus, they can’t afford to lose both of them.
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While, it’s almost certain that Westbrook won’t return to the team, the Rockets can still try to build around James Harden. But they need to be quick and precise with this team as this could be their last chance with the former MVP.
What are your thoughts on the Houston Rockets saga? Do let us know your views in the comments section.