NEW YORK — Happy Draft Day to all who celebrate. After today, you probably won’t see another mock draft, or big board or hear about workouts and interviews for a while.
This has been quite an interesting predraft process, especially in a class that is considered weaker than its recent predecessors. The Houston Rockets are set for a busy day, regardless of the evening’s outcome. They hold the No. 3 pick and know teams are interested in acquiring it. But the Rockets, who have historically sought flexibility, are positioning themselves to be power players soon.
Here’s the latest intel ahead of Wednesday’s first round. Thanks for following along.
• The peculiar timing of the Mikal Bridges-to-New York trade (less than 24 hours before the draft) and the Brooklyn Nets seemingly making the organizational shift toward a much-needed rebuild sent signals across the league late Tuesday night. But Houston’s involvement in swapping picks with the Nets, per team and league sources, was less about any perceived rushed attempt at adding a superstar and more about an asset opportunity that presented itself.
The Rockets still have interest in acquiring a star during this rebuild, team sources said, but age, timeline, contract flexibility — and most importantly, timing — are all factors that will play a part in their search. The current superstar market is less than desirable; Kevin Durant is fond of head coach Ime Udoka but he will turn 36 before next season and will make north of $50 million, Donovan Mitchell is of long-standing interest but looks set to re-sign in Cleveland and Brandon Ingram is someone the organization viewed in a similar tier as Bridges.
• Circling back to Brooklyn, this was not the first time the Rockets had engaged the Nets in acquiring the Phoenix Suns’ draft capital. During initial conversations, it was communicated to Houston that Brooklyn planned to keep Bridges, hoping to use the Suns’ picks to trade for a star like Donovan Mitchell or Damian Lillard to pair with the 27-year-old forward. Whether you want to attribute it to stubbornness on the Nets’ part or determination to stay in the Eastern Conference playoff picture, Brooklyn refused to accept Houston’s previous offer, even as tempting as it might have been to regain control of their future first-round picks.
In last month’s version 1.0 of our draft notebook, The Athletic reported the Rockets maintained a strong interest in the Suns’ picks and planned to revisit discussions with the Nets before the draft. Before last season’s trade deadline, the Rockets expressed a desire to add Bridges but not at the price the Nets were asking, team sources said. Houston’s brass trusted two things would happen: a) the Nets would find it difficult to attract a second star, and b) they would realize owning their first-round picks with a murky future would be important.
Per team sources, the Rockets had no prior intel if Bridges forced the Nets’ hand and requested to be sent to the Knicks or not but had always left the door open for renegotiations. Brooklyn couldn’t trade away its franchise centerpiece without having control of its own assets moving forward, which naturally brought Houston back to the table on Tuesday evening.
• The Rockets are now essentially in control of the Suns’ 2025 and 2027 first-round picks, still have the Nets’ 2027 first (in addition to their own 2027 first) and have the right to choose the more favorable 2029 first-round pick between Dallas and Phoenix, a team source confirmed. In 2028 and 2029, Houston also has its own first-round pick.
Rockets draft picks outgoing
2025 swap with OKC (top 10 protected)
2026 1st round to OKC (top 4 protected)Rockets draft picks incoming
2025 swap with PHX
2027 swap with BKN
2027 1st round from PHX
2029 1st round from PHX or DAL (Best)
2029 Swap with PHX or DAL— Adam Spolane (@AdamSpolane) June 26, 2024
This is a considerable amount of draft capital for the flexibility the Rockets desire, but it won’t necessarily impact their draft plans on Wednesday, team sources maintain. Houston still has an appetite for more.
• In recent days, the Rockets have fielded calls from around the league, with teams gauging Houston’s interest in moving down from the No. 3 pick. As a result, they are seriously considering a trade, team and league sources said, with interest seemingly rising. The Rockets are aware of which teams are genuinely interested and are prepared for several offers once they are on the clock, team sources said, as many of these potential trade-down deals already have structures in place.
• Similar to the deal with Brooklyn, the Rockets are seeking future assets with high upside if they were to trade down from the third pick, team and league sources said — ideally with little to no protections — with an eye for moves down the line. Several lottery teams have already offered a pick in Wednesday’s draft along with a future pick, but there are also offers that don’t include a 2024 first at all. There’s a growing sense the Rockets are waiting until they are on the clock to see if interested parties get aggressive and improve offers, especially depending on whomever the Hawks and Wizards select at No. 1 and 2.
• This is not the first year the Rockets have been presented with trade opportunities, but compared to 2023, 2022 or 2021, the chances of a trade being actualized are higher. Still, the chance of the Rockets not getting a good offer exists, in which case Houston would draft the best player available with the No. 3 pick.
In version 2.0 of our notebook, Connecticut’s Donovan Clingan and Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard were identified as being in a separate tier of their own, with Clingan narrowly edging Sheppard as the top Rockets prospect. That’s still the case hours before the draft, although Sheppard visited the Rockets last Friday in a positive, private 1-on-0 workout attended by Udoka and general manager Rafael Stone.
• Rival teams continue to believe the Rockets have an interest in Memphis’ Marcus Smart in potential trade-down instances, despite recent pushback from team sources. The Charlotte Hornets continue to express interest in acquiring the No. 3 pick, and one Western Conference executive identified center Mark Williams as someone Houston could have an interest in.
• There has been more debate about the 44th pick, a theme that has been prevalent around the league concerning the second round of the draft. Teams are unsure if players they hold second-round grades on will even be available, with the possibility of some sneaking into the back half of the first round seen as a real possibility. Names like Cam Christie, Terrence Shannon Jr., AJ Johnson, Oso Ighodaro and K.J. Simpson are ones to watch as first-round candidates. Houston will most likely select someone at 44, team sources said, but if the bulk of players they like are already gone, a trade could materialize.
• I couldn’t let you good people leave without throwing a fake trade your way. We know the Rockets are open to moving back and both the Grizzlies and Hornets would entertain moving up. What if there was a way to satisfy all parties? (Assume team options on both Williams are picked up. Could also swap the pair of 2024 seconds for a future Grizzlies first.)
(Photo of Rockets GM Rafael Stone: Troy Taormina/USA Today)
