Assuming Victor Wembanyama, Brandon Miller and Scoot Henderson will be the first three picks in the draft, who will the Rockets target at No. 4? Kelly Iko of The Athletic explores that question in his first installment of the team’s big board.
With the assistance of a high-ranking scout, Iko puts Amen Thompson at the top of the list. Thompson would make a great fit for Houston defensively, given its current talent level, though there are questions about the Overtime Elite guard offensively. Villanova forward Cam Whitmore follows him on Iko’s list, thanks to his explosiveness and athleticism in the open floor.
We have more from the Southwest Division:
- Pelicans guard CJ McCollum dispensed career advice to oft-injured Zion Williamson, RealGM relays. Speaking on the Ryen Russillo Show, McCollum said he and Larry Nance Jr. have engaged in multiple conversations with Williamson, whose toughness was questioned when he didn’t play after Jan. 2 due to a hamstring injury. “Your ceiling is unlike anything the NBA has ever seen,” McCollum said of his advice to Williamson. “But it’s up to you to take full advantage of whatever that is. I can’t want it for you. Mom can’t want it for you. Dad can’t want it for you. Staff can’t want it for you. So, it’s up to you to decide what that looks like. You’ve got to figure out what you want to do with this game, because this game will go where you take it.”
- Following a report of a “handshake deal” with the Mavericks, along with attending Lakers games during the postseason, Kyrie Irving indicated on Instagram he’ll control the narrative of his free agency (hat tip to RealGM). “If you hear something about my career, it’s going to happen direct like this,” Irving said. “I am an independent agency. It’s just me.”
- In a subscriber-only story, Chris Herrington of the Daily Memphian details the lessons that the Grizzlies learned during their abbreviated playoff run. He opines they need to be patient with the team’s core and coach Taylor Jenkins but aggressively pursue ways to improve their postseason chances.
After signing Harden and Reaves, Rockets have 5 guard rotation
Starters
Harden and Reaves
Bench
12 minutes per player
Thompson
Jalen Green
Porter
They are not getting reeves of they want harden
Harden is not going to the rockets. He’s trying to create leverage with Philly for a better deal. If you actually listen to the interviews with the Rockets management, all these wild moves are not coming from them. It’s all speculation from reporters desperate for clicks right now. The Rockets want to keep this core together, continue building through the draft, and add veteran free agents to compliment the current roster. Veteran doesn’t mean they have to be old, expensive, and past their prime. It just means they have a couple seasons or more of experience in a winning culture and can bring that with them to a very young rockets team. This notion that they’ll blow up the team to be an 8 seed is absurd but sadly many “fans” believe everything they read.
Yeah now that a Nurse is in Philly Harden will not stay. Maybe others with Houston will leave with Harden coming. Myself Jalen rumors if he wants out with Harden would not blame him. But getting rid of season tickets for this year as far as Rockets if they get Harden. Can we fire Fertitta. Would love to see Harden backfire right in his face because he had to have him. Then we need new owner and GM as Stone is not it
Harden is going to lose more games for you than he wins. All his philly numbers will go down if he joins the lowly rockets,except the money.
Does Kyrie Irving love anything more than he loves talking about Kyrie Irving?
Grizzlies can do better with more discipline. They should make an example of that wanabe thug Morant and make a statement that their core and project are above any super star.
Rockets wasted their pick when they drafted Green. I do believe that Barnes, Giddey, and Wagner were the better options. Their Backcourt is one of the worst in the league. Sengun is a backup C for sure.
Pelicans should trade their part time star Zion in mid season if he keeps faking injuries while racking up millions. I’ll do Zion for Barrett, Randle and 3 first round picks. Their lineup should be:
CJ
Barrett
BI
Randle
Jonas