NBA Rumors: Houston Rockets Reportedly Have Huge Offseason Ambitions, Could Be Eyeing LeBron James and/or Paul George
Rockets came up one win short of making the NBA Finals with their current roster
As far as series losses go, it's hard to top the one the Houston Rockets just endured in terms of sheer devastation.
After a gutty win in Game 5 that put them one win away from making the NBA Finals and ousting the Golden State Warriors, the Rockets' chances to clinch the series victory took a serious hit after superstar point guard Chris Paul was sidelined by an injury.
The Rockets then endured lengthy cold streaks in Games 6 and 7 that paved the way for the Warriors to come back from their deficits and eventually book a fourth consecutive trip to the Finals.
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Understandably, many members of the Rockets franchise took the loss hard, but wallowing in misery is not something that will help the team close the gap with their conference rivals.
The Rockets know that, and recent rumors are hinting that they intend to respond to their crushing loss by bringing in some reinforcements.
First off, in a recent edition of his newsletter, The New York Times' Marc Stein reported that the aforementioned Paul "has already begun his recruitment" of another star to join in the Rockets' cause. The star in question is none other than current Cleveland Cavalier LeBron James.
That's not all.
According to sources spoken to by Rockets Wire's Kelly Iko, the Rockets will also attempt to add Paul George of the Oklahoma City Thunder this offseason.
James and George are probably the two best players who could realistically change teams this offseason, so it's not like the Rockets will be unrivaled in their pursuit of either superstar.
Making things more complicated for the Rockets is that both James and George will likely command large salaries for next year, so the franchise will need to find a way to free up money if they want to add one of the two players.
It would probably be simpler for either James or George to just stay where they are currently or to go to some other team that already has cap space opened up.
Still, even if the Rockets may have a tough time trying to make all the salaries work, they will likely still have a legitimate chance of adding James or George this offseason.
Since adding Kevin Durant to their core of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston, the Warriors have been unstoppable, and prior to their series with the Rockets, no opponent had even managed to win more than one game against them in a playoff matchup.
And yet, the Rockets were right there, and had Paul not gotten injured, they could be the ones playing in the Finals.
The Rockets are a powerhouse right now with Paul and fellow superstar James Harden leading the way with several talented role players flanking them. They could become an even bigger threat or perhaps even superior to the Warriors if they can add a talented wing player such as James or George.
The Rockets have a big offseason ahead of them, and it will be interesting to see if they can accomplish their goals.
