Miami Heat Receive: G Victor Oladipo

Houston Rockets Receive: F Kelly Olynyk, F Precious Achiuwa, G Kendrick Nunn

Houston finally granted James Harden his wish of being traded to the Nets and sent him to Brooklyn in a multi-team deal in exchange for four first-round picks (Nets 2022, 2024, 2026; Bucks 2022), four first-round pick swaps from the Nets in 2021, 2023, 2025 and 2027, Caris LeVert, Dante Exum and Rodions Kurucs. 

Then, the Rockets flipped the script on Caris LeVert and traded him and a future second-round pick to the Indiana Pacers for former NBA All-Star guard, Victor Oladipo. Houston now enters what they hope to be a quick rebuild, with a lot of former star talent.

With plenty of draft assets to come, the Houston Rockets need some talented, youthful players to add to their team for years to come, which is exactly what they would be getting from Miami. Kelly Olynyk is 29-years old, Kendrick Nunn is 25 and Precious Achiuwa is just 21. All three guys could have a major impact with the Rockets and be a part of their core as they rebuild. 

Last season, Kendrick Nunn finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting, trailing the award recipient, Ja Morant and finishing in front of last year’s first overall pick, Zion Williamson. In his “rookie season,” Nunn averaged 15.3 points, 3.3 assists and shot 43.9% from the floor and 35% from three-point range.

While he is still growing as a player, Nunn has proven that he has the potential to be a franchise point guard and with John Wall to learn from, Nunn could be set up for a lot of success in Houston. The same goes for Precious Achiuwa, who has had a fantastic start to his rookie season.

Achiuwa has been thrown into the starting lineup at times this season, as the Heat dealt with health and safety protocols, and he has looked like one of the better rookies in this draft class. Being able to learn from former NBA All-Star big man DeMarcus Cousins and breakout star Christian Wood could turn Achiuwa into an even better player and an integral role player for the Rockets for years to come. 

Houston traded for Victor Oladipo with the initial mindset of pairing him with John Wall in the backcourt, but if they can get a deal for some high-level young talent, the Rockets would definitely consider trading away Oladipo, especially since they are in a position where they are trying to make the best moves to set them up for future success. 

With that being said, let’s take a closer look as to why this trade makes sense for both the Houston Rockets and the Miami Heat.