Why This Trade Works for the Houston Rockets

From the Houston Rockets’ side of things, teams know that Russell Westbrook wants out of Houston, and as a result, his trade value and the return that the Rockets will receive if they trade him will be drastically down from what they may hope to receive. Although Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose may not be in the team’s plans to rebuild for the future, both guys may end up sticking with the Rockets. 

If James Harden decides to stay with the Rockets, which he is rumored to want out as of right now, bringing in two veteran guys who used to play at very high-levels in Griffin and Rose could work out nicely. Both guys still have a lot left to give in the NBA and with one more high-level talent, this Rockets team could go from facing a rebuild, back to a championship caliber team. 

Not to mention they would receive some nice draft capital from the Pistons as well, something Houston gave up in order to get Russell Westbrook. While Detroit would likely give up assets in the draft down the road, 2025 and 2027 NBA draft, the pick-swap the Rockets would get in 2022 would prove to be very beneficial for them assuming that they rebuild.

Being able to gather as many first-round picks as they can right now go a long way for Houston, an organization that could go and rebuild, or continues to challenge for an NBA title now. 

No matter what, the Pistons will have to put together a pretty decent sized package if they want to acquire a player like Russell Westbrook. At the end of the day though, if their team looks like it can contend for the future, there is no use to trade for Westbrook.