<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-chris-paul-timberwolves-rockets-knicks-trade-buzz-heats-up');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Chris Paul linked to Timberwolves, Rockets, Knicks as trade buzz heats up');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Clippers-great-Chris-Paul-.jpg"><figcaption>Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Chris Paul linked to Timberwolves, Rockets, Knicks as trade buzz heats up</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-11T14:10:12-08:00">December 11th, 2:10pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-11T15:08:03-08:00">December 11th, 3:08pm</time><address><a>Malik Brown</a>Malik Brown is a multimedia reporter based in Atlanta who covers the Hawks and Dream for ClutchPoints. Malik has worked in entertainment and sports, and he specializes in the NBA and NFL.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Los Angeles <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-clippers/clippers-news-chris-paul-scarred-l-a-situation-not-ruling-out-joining-new-team">Clippers can’t move Chris Paul until Dec. 15</a>, when he is trade-eligible, and there seem to be some teams that have interest in him. Though this is <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-clippers/clippers-news-chris-paul-nba-history-retirement-announcement">Paul’s last season in the league</a>, he has shown that he still has some value on a contending team, and there are <a href="https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1djGXWOawRVKZ" rel="noopener">three specific teams</a> that could look to add him, according to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.</p><p>“There has been some interest in him from some teams who expressed interest in him during the offseason,” Siegel said. “Some other teams have point guard needs and I wouldn’t be shocked if how we were last year and Dennis Schroder was traded to the Warriors, I wouldn’t be shocked if we saw something similar this year with Chris Paul where he winds up going to a contender where he contribute whether that’s in the starting lineup or off the bench with 15 to 18 minutes a game.</p><p>“If he wants to go to a team like the Minnesota Timberwolves or the Houston Rockets, two teams that have been rumored to have a level of interest in Chris Paul… Another one that had interest in him over the offseason that I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re interested in him again is the New York Knicks.”</p><p>Paul would be a nice addition to any three of those teams, but there’s a chance that he would not be a starter in those situations. The Rockets would be the one team where he could have the chance to start, and with not much depth at the guard position, he would get some key minutes.</p><p>To end his career, Paul wanted the chance to stay close to family, but at this point, he will have to sacrifice that dream a little bit and broaden his horizons if he wants to play in his final season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Chris Paul linked to Timberwolves, Rockets, Knicks as trade buzz heats up

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/nba-rumors-will-rockets-get-in-on-ja-morant-trade-talks-with-fred-vanvleet-out');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Will Rockets get in on Ja Morant trade talks with Fred VanVleet out?');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Ja-Morant-12-dribbles-the-ball-during-the-first-quarter-against-the-Houston-Rockets.jpg"><figcaption>© Troy Taormina-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Will Rockets get in on Ja Morant trade talks with Fred VanVleet out?</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-05T09:44:38-08:00">November 5th, 9:44am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-05T09:44:38-08:00">November 5th, 9:44am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the Houston Rockets prepare for a three-game road trip beginning Wednesday night against the Memphis Grizzlies, speculation has resurfaced regarding a potential blockbuster trade involving star guard Ja Morant. With <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/fred-vanvleet-injury-blessing-disguise-rockets-amen-thompson-reed-sheppard">Fred VanVleet still sidelined due to a torn ACL</a>, some have questioned whether the Rockets could pursue Morant if the Grizzlies explored moving the 26-year-old.</p><p>In a recent report from The Athletic’s Sam Amick, Houston was <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6779151/2025/11/05/ja-morant-grizzlies-future-relationship/" rel="noopener">briefly linked to the idea</a>. While confirming other teams like the Timberwolves and Kings could enter potential trade discussions if Morant were to become available, Amick stated that the Rockets are “unlikely to pursue him,” according to a team source.</p><p>“The Minnesota Timberwolves, per a team source, are one. Ditto for the Sacramento Kings,” Amick wrote. “The Grizzlies’ next opponent, the Houston Rockets, need a point guard after losing Fred VanVleet to a torn ACL in the preseason but, per a team source, are unlikely to pursue him.”</p><p>Morant is currently in his seventh NBA season and remains under contract through the 2028–29 campaign. Through seven games, he is averaging 20.4 points, 7.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and one steal per game while shooting a career-low 39.3% from the field and 13.9% from beyond the arc across 29.4 minutes per game.</p><h2><b>Ja Morant’s strained ties with Grizzlies spark trade speculation ahead of Rockets matchup</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Ja-Morant-12-dribbles-the-ball-as-Houston-Rockets-forward-Amen-Thompson-1-defends.jpg"><figcaption>© Troy Taormina-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/memphis-grizzlies/grizzlies-news-tuomas-iisalo-ja-morant-moving-incident-that-led-suspension">Tensions between Morant and the Grizzlies’ coaching staff</a> have recently made headlines. In the team’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/memphis-grizzlies/grizzlies-news-ja-morants-unhappy-reaction-weird-game-vs-lakers">117–112 NBA Cup loss to the Los Angeles Lakers</a>, Morant shot just 3-for-14 from the field and finished with eight points, seven assists, and one rebound. After the game, he voiced frustration when asked about the loss, directing reporters to “go ask the coaching staff” and sarcastically suggesting they “probably don’t play me.”</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/memphis-grizzlies/grizzlies-ja-morant-suspended-one-game-after-going-off-on-coaches">Morant was suspended for one game</a> following the remarks and returned in a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/memphis-grizzlies/grizzlies-news-ja-morant-opens-up-relationship-memphis-suspension">114–106 loss to the Detroit Pistons</a>. In his return, he recorded 18 points, 10 assists, five rebounds, and a steal while shooting 5-for-16. When asked if his issues with the coaching staff were resolved, Morant responded evasively: “Yeah. They (coaching staff) told y’all that, right?”</p><p>He also acknowledged a lack of enjoyment in his current situation, replying <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/memphis-grizzlies/grizzlies-news-did-ja-morant-just-hint-at-potential-move-with-lack-of-joy-admission">“no” when asked if he still felt his usual joy</a>, and added, “we’ll see,” when asked how he might get it back.</p><p>Despite the ongoing drama, any trade involving Morant would likely require a significant package. The Rockets, who are 4–2 and riding a three-game winning streak, have managed well without VanVleet. Houston’s offense has thrived behind Alperen Sengun and Kevin Durant, and the organization appears committed to building around its current core.</p><p>Still, as the Rockets and Grizzlies prepare to face off Wednesday night at FedExForum at 8:00 p.m. ET, all eyes will be on Morant’s demeanor and performance — and whether Houston’s front office begins to reconsider its stance if Memphis entertains offers.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Will Rockets get in on Ja Morant trade talks with Fred VanVleet out?

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/nba-rumors-blazers-young-star-likely-100-million-contract-extension');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Blazers feature the next young star ‘most likely’ to get $100 million contract extension');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Shaedon-Sharpe.jpg"><figcaption>© Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Blazers feature the next young star ‘most likely’ to get $100 million contract extension</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-19T07:42:47-07:00">October 19th, 7:42am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-19T07:43:31-07:00">October 19th, 7:43am</time><address><a>Rishabh Bhatnagar</a>Rishabh is a seasoned NBA and sports journalist and editor with over seven years of experience working for reputed organizations. A novelist first and foremost, he has written three fiction books. His high threshold of knowledge combined with his writing skills gives him the ability to write uniquely insightful pieces across basketball, soccer, cricket, lawn tennis, eSports, and a variety of other sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Portland Trail Blazers’ <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/blazers-player-shock-world-breakout-2025-26-season">Shaedon Sharpe has gone strength-to-strength since joining the NBA</a> as the 7th overall pick of the 2022 draft. After a strong campaign last time around that saw him average 18.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/blazers-news-shaedon-sharpes-contract-negotiations">Sharpe is set to enter the 2025-26 season knowing</a> that he will be a restricted free agent next summer.</p><p>However, according to Jake Fischer at The Stein Line, Sharpe is currently seen as the <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/lots-and-lots-of-the-nbas-latest?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=176456421&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=39f60&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">most probable rookie-scale player</a> to secure an extension before the October 21 deadline.</p><p>“Shaedon Sharpe may be the most likely rookie extension still in play to cross the finish line. Given Sharpe’s strong preseason play and tantalizing scoring potential, multiple teams we consulted still project Portland and Sharpe to find an agreement in the ballpark of the four-year, $100 million contract that Giddey ultimately secured in Chicago,” he wrote.</p><p>In four preseason games thus far, Sharpe has averaged 19.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game while shooting at over 45% overall. The 22-year-old is his team’s leading scorer and is considered highly likely to sign an extension around the $100 million mark that Josh Gidder signed with the Chicago Bulls.</p><p>This figure ($25 million annually) positions Sharpe in the tier of developing, high-upside guards who haven’t yet become All-Stars but project to be elite scorers or secondary playmakers. The Blazers’ decision to move Jrue Holiday and commit to a rebuild around Henderson and Sharpe makes such an extension logical.</p><p>It also protects them from spending more money potentially next season as Sharpe becomes a restricted free agent. That means the Rockets will potentially have to at least match offers from other teams, opening up a potential bidding war.</p><p>Hence, it appears to be in the franchise’s best interest to lock him down in the current offseason. Regardless, as things stand, the Rockets have not yet made their move.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Blazers feature the next young star ‘most likely’ to get $100 million contract extension

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-kevin-durants-90-million-extension-amen-thompson-tari-eason');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rockets rumors: What does Kevin Durant’s $90 million extension mean for Amen Thompson, Tari Eason?');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/KD.jpg"><figcaption>Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><h1>Rockets rumors: What does Kevin Durant’s $90 million extension mean for Amen Thompson, Tari Eason?</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-19T07:08:27-07:00">October 19th, 7:08am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-19T07:08:27-07:00">October 19th, 7:08am</time><address><a>Rishabh Bhatnagar</a>Rishabh is a seasoned NBA and sports journalist and editor with over seven years of experience working for reputed organizations. A novelist first and foremost, he has written three fiction books. His high threshold of knowledge combined with his writing skills gives him the ability to write uniquely insightful pieces across basketball, soccer, cricket, lawn tennis, eSports, and a variety of other sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-kevin-durant-lebron-james-career-contract-record">Houston Rockets have tied down Kevin Durant on a further two-year, $90 million deal</a> extension that keeps him with the team through the 2027-28 campaign. The deal means that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-kevin-durant-30-million-sacrifice-90-million-contract-extension">KD signed a contract roughly $30 million short of the maximum</a> that he was eligible for.</p><p>However, what does it mean for the likes of Amen Thompsen and Tari Eason, who are both also due for extensions? According to Marc Stein of The Stein Line, <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/lots-and-lots-of-the-nbas-latest?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=176456421&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=39f60&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">both players should also get the extensions</a> they seemingly deserve due to Durant’s contract saving the Rockets considerable money.</p><p>“Word is that Houston hopes to re-sign Eason alongside Amen Thompson at a number significantly lower than Jabari Smith Jr.’s five-year, $122 million contract inked early in the summer,” Stein wrote.</p><p>Stein claimed that the Rockets’ ability to pay Eason was directly connected to the KD contract. The Houston front office is well aware that they are headed toward a situation where they will need to balance payments in order to save money on the luxury tax in the coming campaigns.</p><p>Further, Thompson’s ability to stand in for the injured Fred VanVleet serves as an added bonus, with his defensive impact also being a reason why he is expected to be paid big money.</p><p>“You have probably seen Thompson starting at point guard for the Rockets in the wake of the devastating Fred VanVleet injury. That’s on top of the considerable impact he already delivers at the other end, which has established Thompson as many coaches’ preseason pick for Defensive Player of the Year,” he explained.</p><p>In a nutshell, Stein believes that Thompson is headed toward a max deal when he becomes eligible for it next summer.</p><p>“Those same capologists are thus left to ponder how much less Durant would be willing to take to help the Rockets maintain a contending core for this twilight of his career. Two team officials who know the CBA like the back of their hand told me this week that they would be urging Houston, were they working in the Rockets’ front office, to cap any offer at $80 million over two years. Would Durant be open to that sort of pay cut?” he said.</p><p>The question has now been answered, with Durant taking considerably less money than what he was eligible for. That move is expected to help the Rockets over the coming time and should result in them locking down both Thompson and Tari Eason.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Rockets rumors: What does Kevin Durant’s $90 million extension mean for Amen Thompson, Tari Eason?

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-the-extension-houston-prefers-secure-before-kevin-durant');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rockets rumors: The extension Houston ‘prefers’ to secure before Kevin Durant');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Durant-at-media-day.jpg"><figcaption>Troy Taormina-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Rockets rumors: The extension Houston ‘prefers’ to secure before Kevin Durant</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-05T08:54:05-07:00">October 5th, 8:54am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-05T08:54:05-07:00">October 5th, 8:54am</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University alum from Atlanta who graduated with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Houston Rockets are less than three weeks away from kicking off their 2025-26 season with a road game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Houston is preparing to embark on the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-kevin-durant-dishes-rockets-longhorn-connections">Kevin Durant era</a>, with the star widely expected to sign an <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-kevin-durant-confirms-houston-contract-extension">extension with the Rockets team</a> that traded for him back during the summer.</p><p>Still, before that happens, the Rockets reportedly have <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/restricted-free-agency-is-over-at?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=175311982&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=39f60&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">one other name</a> that they’d like to keep on the books for the future.</p><p>“I’ve likewise heard that the Rockets would prefer to secure an extension with Tari Eason before finalizing their widely expected two-year pact with Kevin Durant,” reported NBA insider Jake Fischer on Marc Stein’s Substack.</p><p>Fischer also clarified, however, that “If Durant’s deal gets done first, that’s no real issue.”</p><p>As for Houston’s rationale, Fischer pointed out that “Eason would likely receive a four-year deal if an extension can be hashed out… Houston would relish knowing exactly how the books look with an extended Eason before doing the two-year deal that Durant himself announced on Monday that he expects to land.”</p><p>Tari Eason is one of the many young and athletic wing defenders on this Houston roster that turned them into one of the best defensive teams in the league a year ago.</p><h2><b>An exciting time for the Rockets</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Rockets-Kevin-Durant-photoshoot.jpg"><figcaption>Troy Taormina-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Fred VanVleet’s torn ACL injury from two weeks ago certainly dimmed the mood a bit for the Houston Rockets as they prepare for the 2025-26 campaign, but it’s still far and away the most anticipated season for the franchise in at least six years, and possibly longer than that.</p><p>While the Oklahoma City Thunder are still viewed by most as the favorites in the Western Conference after returning their entire championship core from a year ago, the Rockets figure to be right there with the Denver Nuggets as their biggest challengers in the conference.</p><p>Houston has several different ways it can beat opponents, and their half court scoring droughts are unlikely to be an issue now that Durant is in the fold.</p><p>The Rockets and Thunder will kick off their respective seasons against one another on October 21.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Rockets rumors: The extension Houston ‘prefers’ to secure before Kevin Durant

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-bulls-reporter-suggests-coby-white-trade-to-rockets');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Bulls reporter suggests Coby White trade to Rockets');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Coby-White.jpg"><figcaption>Nell Redmond-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Bulls reporter suggests Coby White trade to Rockets</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-28T13:25:47-07:00">September 28th, 1:25pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-28T13:25:47-07:00">September 28th, 1:25pm</time><address><a>Zachary Weinberger</a>Zachary Weinberger joined ClutchPoints in October 2023 as a Miami Heat reporter as well as an Associate Editor. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2022 after covering the school's athletic programs since his freshman year at the FAU University Press, where he was a Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He then covered FAU Sports for The Palm Beach Post.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Bulls</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/chicago-bulls/bulls-player-shock-world-breakout-2025-26-season">Chicago Bulls prepare for the 2025-26 season</a>, there are expectations that the team could take a step up from last season, where they were eliminated from the play-in tournament by the Miami Heat. With <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/chicago-bulls/bulls-rumors-insider-hard-nikola-vucevic-trade-prediction">rumors surrounding the Bulls</a> on the moves the team can make, one beat reporter suggests trading star Coby White.</p><p>Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times wrote a column on Sunday detailing how a deal involving White going to the Houston Rockets makes sense for both sides. Looking at Houston, he mentions the season-ending injury to Fred VanVleet that he sustained right before the start of the season and how a trade is the only way to find a suitable replacement.</p><p>Cowley believes White fills in that role <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/bulls/2025/09/28/houston-solution-bulls-coby-white-becoming-a-rocket" rel="noopener">“perfectly,”</a> and with Chicago having a “crowded guard room,” a trade could be coming.</p><p>“Because of Houston’s payroll and the dried up free-agent market, a trade is the only real solution, and the Bulls just happened to have a player that fits the VanVleet role perfectly, and maybe even better. Enter Coby White,” Cowley wrote.</p><p>“White is in the final year of his current contract, informed the team several times that he would not be taking an extension until he hits free agency next summer, and is part of a crowded guard room,” Cowley continued.</p><h2><b>Potential Coby White trade that is “win-win” for Bulls and Rockets</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Coby-White_3107e0.jpg"><figcaption>© Nell Redmond-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Cowley does bring up the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/chicago-bulls/bulls-news-josh-giddey-espn-nba-rank-100-million-contract">Bulls giving Josh Giddey a $100 million contract extension</a> and how, with other signings, White’s role with the team could be lost. The reporter would even come up with a trade saying that White goes to the Rockets with Chicago getting Reed Sheppard and Tari Eason in return, calling it a “win-win for both teams.”</p><p>“The Bulls extended Josh Giddey for four years, $100 million several weeks ago, re-signed Tre Jones, still have Ayo Dosunmu, and aren’t sure what Dalen Terry is exactly,” Cowley wrote. “Factor in Kevin Huerter in the final year of his contract, and plenty of guards to go around. A White for Sheppard and disgruntled forward Tari Eason is a win-win for both teams.”</p><p>At any rate, it remains to be seen if the Bulls will trade White, as last season, he averaged a career-high 20.4 points on 45.3 percent shooting from the field and 37 percent from deep. Chicago opens the season on Oct. 22 against the Detroit Pistons.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Bulls reporter suggests Coby White trade to Rockets

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-nba-execs-make-trade-predictions-fred-vanvleet-injury');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rockets rumors: NBA execs make trade predictions after Fred VanVleet injury');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Rockets-guard-Fred-VanVleet.jpg"><figcaption>Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Rockets rumors: NBA execs make trade predictions after Fred VanVleet injury</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-24T08:52:40-07:00">September 24th, 8:52am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-24T08:52:40-07:00">September 24th, 8:52am</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Houston Rockets could be in a position to make a trade amid <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/fred-vanvleet-injury-impacts-rockets-place-western-conference-hierarchy">losing Fred VanVleet due to a torn ACL</a>; however, that won’t be any time soon, according to one NBA insider. It’s a tremendous blow to the Rockets ahead of a highly anticipated 2025-26 campaign. This is the season Houston is positioned to make a deep playoff run after trading for All-Star Kevin Durant and coming off a 52-win regular season.</p><p>Still, the Rockets will most likely enter the upcoming season <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Alak46eaixs" rel="noopener">without making any significant trades</a>, Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor, who spoke to various NBA executives, said.</p><p>“So Houston is in a position right now where I talked to a bunch of executives over the last 24 hours since the injury happened. I asked, ‘What do you think Houston’s going to do?’ All of them said they’re likely going to go into the year with the team they have, play the young guys, then come December or January, that’s when you think about making moves or trades.”</p><p>That’s the most likely path for the Rockets, considering what it cost them to trade for Durant, which included Jalen Green, the 10th overall pick in this year’s draft, Dillon Brooks, and a handful of future second-round picks.</p><h2><b>Insider shoots down Rockets trade idea after Fred VanVleet injury</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Rockets-guard-Fred-VanVleet-2.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>While losing Fred VanVleet is a tremendous loss to the starting lineup, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-insider-shoots-down-fred-vanvleet-trade-idea-injury">the Rockets aren’t desperate to make a trade</a>. It’s <a href="https://www.hoopshype.com/story/sports/nba/rumors/2025/09/24/but-fred-vanvleet-still-has-a-no-trade-clause-because/86324296007/" rel="noopener">still too early</a> at this time of the year, as The Athletic’s Kelly Iko noted.</p><p>“Yeah — not at this time. I don’t. I think it’s still pretty raw in their minds. I talked to them the other day, and they said, ‘Look, this is the bed that we made. If we’re going into the season, these are the guys we’re going to battle with,’” said Iko, via HoopsHype. “Come December, you might have different conversations. Clint Capela is making a team-friendly salary — you could see something happen with that.”</p><p>All signs point to the Rockets making a move at some point in the regular season. Filling the void left in VanVleet’s absence will most likely be answered at some point.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Rockets rumors: NBA execs make trade predictions after Fred VanVleet injury

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-insider-shoots-down-fred-vanvleet-trade-idea-injury');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rockets rumors: Insider shoots down Fred VanVleet trade idea after injury');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/VanVleet-vs-the-Hawks.jpg"><figcaption>Brett Davis-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Rockets rumors: Insider shoots down Fred VanVleet trade idea after injury</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-24T08:24:35-07:00">September 24th, 8:24am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-24T08:24:35-07:00">September 24th, 8:24am</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University alum from Atlanta who graduated with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>On Tuesday, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/fred-vanvleet-injury-impacts-rockets-place-western-conference-hierarchy">Houston Rockets suffered</a> some devastating injury news when <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/fred-vanvleet-injury-dooms-kevin-durant-rockets-tenure-before-begins">Fred VanVleet went down</a> with a torn ACL injury that could sideline him for the entirety of the upcoming 2025-26 NBA season. The news, initially reported by Shams Charania of ESPN, put a major dent in the hopes of a Rockets team that is looking to make some real noise in the wake of their trade for Kevin Durant.</p><p>Once word of the injury spread, fans were quick to speculate on what would come next for the Rockets, with one asking Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports <a href="https://www.hoopshype.com/story/sports/nba/rumors/2025/09/24/but-fred-vanvleet-still-has-a-no-trade-clause-because/86324296007/" rel="noopener">whether or not</a> a trade could be on the horizon.</p><p>“Yeah — not at this time. I don’t. I think it’s still pretty raw in their minds. I talked to them the other day, and they said, ‘Look, this is the bed that we made. If we’re going into the season, these are the guys we’re going to battle with,'” said Iko, via HoopsHype. “Come December, you might have different conversations. Clint Capela is making a team-friendly salary — you could see something happen with that.”</p><p>However, Iko reaffirmed that Houston is happy with what they have in the locker room.</p><p>“But outside of that, these are the guys they want in the rotation. Ime Udoka specifically handcrafted this roster, right? His identity is length, versatility, and size on the perimeter. You’ve got Tari Eason, Jabari Smith Jr., Dorian Finney-Smith, Josh Okogie, guys like Jae’Sean Tate — you want to have as many of those guys as possible,” added Iko.</p><h2>A tough break for the Rockets</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Fred-VanVleet.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Houston Rockets were projected by many to be a legitimate threat to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference this year, and they very well still could be. However, the VanVleet injury certainly could throw a wrench in those plans, particularly if backup guard Reed Sheppard, who saw sporadic minutes in his rookie season last year, is unable to step into the role effectively.</p><p>In any case, the Rockets are slated to kick off their 2025 season on the road against the Oklahoma City Thunder on October 22.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Rockets rumors: Insider shoots down Fred VanVleet trade idea after injury

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-kevin-durant-could-take-20-million-pay-cut-contract-extension');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rockets rumors: Kevin Durant could take over $20 million pay cut on contract extension');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Rockets-All-Star-Kevin-Durant_4f2578.jpg"><figcaption>Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Rockets rumors: Kevin Durant could take over $20 million pay cut on contract extension</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-08-11T07:15:56-07:00">August 11th, 7:15am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-08-11T07:15:56-07:00">August 11th, 7:15am</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>While the Houston Rockets’ trade for All-Star Kevin Durant makes them title contenders for the upcoming season, many are wondering why they haven’t signed him an extension. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/kevin-durant-potential-rockets-extension-hit-with-harsh-reality">Durant’s potential extension with the Rockets is crucial</a> for the team’s future. With a young supporting cast that will only improve in a competitve Western Conference, adding Kevin has only increased Houston’s chances of competing with the champion Oklahoma City Thunder.</p><p>And Durant could be willing to <a href="https://www.nbcsports.com/nba/news/could-kevin-durants-contract-extension-with-rockets-be-for-considerably-less-than-max" rel="noopener">take a significant pay cut</a> on a short-term extension, per NBC Sports’ Kurt Helin.</p><p>“The contract has to be short in this case, but what is a fair number for the future Hall of Famer? One source who spoke to NBC Sports during Summer League suggested KD might dip to about the $100 million mark for two years, around $10 million a season below the max but still $50 million a season,” Helin reported. “However, maybe that number is too high. Maybe Durant will take less — he has the right to make whatever choice he thinks is best for him, his legacy and his family.”</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-kevin-durant-takes-jab-thunder-response-ring-night-matchup">Rockets will look to spoil Thunder’s ring ceremony</a> when they face the champions at the Paycom Center on Opening Night. Durant, who spent his first nine seasons with the Oklahoma City organization, will watch it raise its first championship banner in franchise history.</p><h2><b>Will Rockets ink Kevin Durant to a max extension?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Rockets-All-Star-Kevin-Durant-2.jpg"><figcaption>Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Rockets have had since July 1 to offer their newest All-Star, Kevin Durant, to a contract extension. However, Durant <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtG6snHrVa4" rel="noopener">may not push for a max extension</a>, per ESPN’s Tim MacMahon.</p><p>“By all appearances and by what I’ve heard, they’re not going all in on an extension for Kevin Durant,” MacMahon said. “Now, doesn’t mean it won’t happen, but there’ve been rumblings of KD not going to push for the full max. I don’t know that the Rockets are going to put anything on the table that’s close to the max.”</p><p>Rockets will most likely ink Durant a short-term deal, per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.</p><p>“I think the Rockets are like it’s not ideal, but I don’t think they would panic if they go into the season with Kevin Durant just on the contract that he’s on just on the on the expiring deal,” Windhorst said. “Rafael Stone, since he’s been the GM of the of the Rockets, he’s signed quite a few giant contracts, but a lot most of them have been short.”</p><p>Durant and the Rockets will face the Thunder on October 21.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Rockets rumors: Kevin Durant could take over $20 million pay cut on contract extension

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-houston-dean-wade-cavs-trade-dorian-finney-smit-signing');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rockets rumors: Houston pursued Dean Wade, Cavs trade before Dorian Finney-Smith signing');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Wade-vs-the-Rockets.jpg"><figcaption>Erik Williams-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Rockets rumors: Houston pursued Dean Wade, Cavs trade before Dorian Finney-Smith signing</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-21T12:49:25-07:00">July 21st, 12:49pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-21T12:51:54-07:00">July 21st, 12:51pm</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University senior from Atlanta on track to graduate with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>It’s been a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/houston-rockets-2025-nba-free-agency-grade-for-every-signing">busy offseason for the Houston Rockets</a>, headlined by their blockbuster <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-ime-udoka-gets-real-what-kevin-durant-addition-means">trade for Kevin Durant</a> from the Phoenix Suns in exchange for a package centered around Jalen Green. Additionally, the Rockets have made some savvy lower profile signings, including poaching Dorian Finney-Smith away from the Los Angeles Lakers<a href="https://x.com/ShamsCharania/status/1939813747583066151" rel="noopener"> in free agency.</a></p><p>Recently, ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel reported on <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/siegels-scoop-nba-intel-chris-paul-bradley-beal-marcus-smart-deals">some of the other</a> names the Rockets were rumored to have interest in prior to signing Finney-Smith.</p><p>“Before signing Dorian Finney-Smith in free agency, the Houston Rockets pursued a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers for forward Dean Wade, sources said,” reported Siegel. “Houston was willing to offer Wade a full MLE extension over the next few seasons, the same deal that Finney-Smith ultimately got, if they were able to finalize a trade with Cleveland.”</p><p>Siegel also reported that “when the Cavaliers declined this trade involving Wade and the Lakers’ fallout with Finney-Smith made its rounds across the league, the Rockets quickly moved on to the veteran two-way wing and offered him a four-year, $52.7 million contract,” and that these talks had occurred shortly before the NBA Draft.</p><p>Dean Wade, similar to Finney-Smith, is a floor spacer at the wing position who is versatile defensively and can knock down perimeter shots with consistency.</p><p>Still, Houston has to be happy about what they came away with in this offseason, as the Rockets now look poised to legitimately compete with the reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder for supremacy in the Western Conference.</p><p>It’s been a long time coming for the Rockets, who were one of the NBA’s worst teams in the wake of 2020’s James Harden trade but have put together a smart and quick rebuild around Alperen Sengun and a host of other young and talented players.</p><p>In any case, the Rockets’ 2025 NBA schedule is slated to be released at some point in August.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Rockets rumors: Houston pursued Dean Wade, Cavs trade before Dorian Finney-Smith signing

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/minnesota-timberwolves/nba-rumors-brian-windhorst-confirms-timberwolves-kevin-durant-trade-offer');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Brian Windhorst confirms Timberwolves’ Kevin Durant trade offer');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Kevin-Durant-and-Anthony-Edwards.jpg"><figcaption>Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Brian Windhorst confirms Timberwolves’ Kevin Durant trade offer</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-17T08:06:27-07:00">July 17th, 8:06am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-17T08:06:27-07:00">July 17th, 8:06am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>ESPN’s Brian Windhorst confirmed Thursday that the Minnesota Timberwolves <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45758601/how-bradley-beal-phoenix-suns-finalized-their-contentious-divorce" rel="noopener">made a formal trade offer</a> for <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/kevin-durant-trade-grades-rockets-suns-after-blockbuster-deal">Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant before he was ultimately dealt to the Houston Rockets</a> in June.</p><p>According to Windhorst, the Timberwolves’ proposal included a package centered around veteran center Rudy Gobert, guard Donte DiVincenzo, rookie forward Terrence Shannon Jr., and the No. 17 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. The Suns reportedly held in-depth discussions with Minnesota before shifting course.</p><p>“Before taking the Rockets offer, the Suns had in-depth discussions with the Minnesota Timberwolves about moving Durant for a package that included star center Rudy Gobert, guard Donte DiVincenzo, promising forward Terrence Shannon Jr. and the 17th pick in this year’s draft,” Windhorst wrote in his latest report. “Sources told ESPN.”</p><p>The deal did not advance due to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/minnesota-timberwolves/nba-rumors-timberwolves-playing-hardball-in-kevin-durant-trade">Durant’s lack of interest in joining the Timberwolves</a>. While he did not hold a no-trade clause, Durant’s influence over trade discussions played a factor, particularly with only one year remaining on his contract.</p><p>“Durant had made it known that the Wolves were not on his short list of preferred teams,” Windhorst reported. “And with just one season left on his contract, Durant had leverage. The talks faded.”</p><h2><b>Timberwolves’ offer for Kevin Durant could’ve kept Bradley Beal with Suns</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Kevin-Durant-Bradley-Beal-and-Devin-Booker-walk-to-the-court.jpg"><figcaption>Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-thanasis-antetokounmpo-major-declaration-kevin-durant-trade">Suns ultimately completed a trade with the Rockets</a> that returned a younger core highlighted by guard Jalen Green. Windhorst noted that had the Suns accepted Minnesota’s offer, they may have prioritized retaining Bradley Beal in the aftermath.</p><p>“Had that deal come to fruition, there was a place for Beal in the lineup, and the Suns might’ve made it a priority to keep him,” Windhorst added.</p><p>Instead, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/clippers-news-bradley-beal-officially-suns-buyout-sign-la">Suns reached a contract buyout with Beal</a>, who later <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-clippers/grading-bradley-beal-11-million-clippers-contract-after-suns-buyout">signed a two-year, $11 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers</a>.</p><p>Durant, 36, averaged 26.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game last season while shooting 52.4% from the field and 41.2% from three. He now joins a Rockets team led by Green, Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson, as Houston looks to transition from a rebuilding phase to playoff contention.</p><p>Minnesota, meanwhile, was exploring ways to upgrade its roster following a run to the Western Conference Finals. The franchise has remained committed to building around Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle but was open to moving Gobert in the right deal. DiVincenzo was a key contributor in their playoff rotation, and Shannon Jr., selected in the first round, was viewed as a promising long-term piece.</p><p>Windhorst’s report offers rare confirmation of the Timberwolves’ aggressive pursuit of Durant and provides further insight into one of the most impactful trade negotiations of the NBA offseason.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Brian Windhorst confirms Timberwolves’ Kevin Durant trade offer

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-rockets-kevin-durant-trade-7-team-deal');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Rockets’ Kevin Durant trade becomes 7-team deal');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Suns-Kevin-Durant-2.jpg"><figcaption>Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Rockets’ Kevin Durant trade becomes 7-team deal</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-06T10:42:49-07:00">July 6th, 10:42am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-06T10:43:03-07:00">July 6th, 10:43am</time><address><a>Rishav Bhat</a>Rishav is a seasoned NBA and sports journalist and editor with over seven years of experience working for reputed organizations. A novelist first and foremost, he has written three fiction books. His high threshold of knowledge combined with his writing skills gives him the ability to write uniquely insightful pieces across basketball, soccer, cricket, lawn tennis, eSports, and a variety of other sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Hawks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Houston Rockets have officially finalized what is an NBA-record seven-team trade deal that most prominently sees <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/the-next-trade-rockets-must-make-after-acquiring-kevin-durant-from-suns">Kevin Durant arrive from the Phoenix Suns</a>. Durant becomes the centerpiece on the trade deal that now also involves the likes of the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, and Minnesota Timberwolves, in addition to the Suns and Rockets.</p><p>The Rockets and the Suns decided to expand the trade to <a href="https://x.com/FredKatz/status/1941891199482180090" rel="noopener">consolidate a set of previously agreed-upon trades</a>, according to The Athletic’s Fred Katz. The move was made as a result of the seven teams trying to save time on trade calls. Instead of making several trade calls, the decision allows <a href="https://x.com/FredKatz/status/1941883371589685423" rel="noopener">all the deals to be worked into one</a>.</p><p>“This is basically teams trying to save times on trade calls. Instead of having to do a bunch of different trade calls, now they just have to do one. So they worked it into one seven-team deal,” Katz wrote on X, formerly Twitter.</p><h2><b>Rockets-Suns Kevin Durant trade morphs into seven-team deal</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Suns-superstar-Kevin-Durant.jpg"><figcaption>Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>The Atlanta Hawks offloaded Capela, receiving cash consideration, a traded player exception, as well as a 2031 second-round pick swap from the Rockets. Further, the Nets also received two second-round picks, while the Warriors received the rights to Alex Toohey and Jahmai Mashack.</p><p>The Lakers received the rights to Adou Thiero from the Nets, with the Timberwolves receiving a two second-round picks as well as the rights to Rocco Zikarsky, in addition to a traded player exception for Nickeil Alexander-Walker while covering half of his salary. </p><p>The hefty trade deal becomes an NBA record-setter despite most of the moves not being dependant on each other. The involved teams simply decided to save time and do not receive any financial advantage by integrating all of the above agreements in one single deal. </p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Rockets’ Kevin Durant trade becomes 7-team deal

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-cam-whitmore-nearly-traded-suns-kevin-durant');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rockets rumors: Cam Whitmore was nearly traded to Suns for Kevin Durant');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Rockets-Cam-Whitmore.jpg"><figcaption>Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><h1>Rockets rumors: Cam Whitmore was nearly traded to Suns for Kevin Durant</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-06T10:21:08-07:00">July 6th, 10:21am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-06T12:34:47-07:00">July 6th, 12:34pm</time><address><a>Jaren Kawada</a>Jaren Kawada is a former full-time sports bettor and is now a NFL, College Football and Betting Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. Kawada was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, but now resides in Indianapolis, Indiana, after graduating from Butler University with a B.A. in sports media. Aside from football, Kawada is an avid combat sports and basketball bettor.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>In their latest move of an active offseason, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/wizards-acquiring-cam-whitmore-in-trade-with-rockets">Houston Rockets traded guard Cam Whitmore to the Washington Wizards</a> on Saturday afternoon. While the move was somewhat surprising, the Rockets reportedly attempted to include Whitmore in their trade <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-kevin-durant-trade-suns-jalen-green">deal with the Phoenix Suns to acquire Kevin Durant</a>.</p><p>Whitmore, 20, is undeniably an asset, but the Rockets appeared determined to cash in on his value before he becomes eligible for an extension in 2026. Houston offered his services to the Suns in addition to Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks, but Phoenix <a href="https://x.com/MikeAScotto/status/1941889674064069061" rel="noopener">preferred taking a slew of second-round picks</a>, according to NBA insider Michael Scotto.</p><p>“Cam Whitmore was nearly traded to the Phoenix Suns in the Kevin Durant trade, league sources told HoopsHype,” Scotto tweeted. “Instead, Phoenix opted for more future second-round draft pick compensation. He averaged 10.8 points in 17.4 minutes in two seasons for the Rockets and turns 21 on July 8.”</p><p>Instead, the Rockets traded Whitmore to the Wizards for two second-round picks — one in 2026 and one in 2029. Houston reportedly had multiple offers for Whitmore but wanted to <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45678556/sources-rockets-trade-whitmore-wizards-two-seconds" rel="noopener">send him to a team</a> where he has a “legitimate chance to thrive in his career,” per ESPN.</p><p>By joining the Wizards, the Rockets sent Whitmore back to his hometown area. The versatile guard was born and raised in Odenton, Maryland, roughly a 45-minute drive from Washington, D.C.</p><h2><b>Rockets’ new-look roster following Kevin Durant trade</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Kevin-Durant-during-Suns-game.jpg"><figcaption>Brett Davis-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Without Whitmore on the team, the Rockets furthered their 2025 offseason overhaul. Houston will debut an entirely new team in the fall, with Durant joining Clint Capela and Dorian Finney-Smith as the team’s latest additions.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-fred-vanvleet-sign-50-million-contract-extension">Rockets extended Fred VanVleet</a>, Jabari Smith Jr. and Steven Adams, while re-signing Jae’Sean Tate, Jeff Green and Aaron Holiday. However, with Green and Brooks departing, Houston loses its leading scorer and best perimeter defender. Durant will certainly replace the scoring that Green provided, but the team will miss Brooks’ daily intensity that was the engine behind their elite defense.</p><p>Following the Durant deal, Houston also waived backup center Jock Landale, who subsequently signed with the Memphis Grizzlies. In total, they return just eight rotational players for the 2025-2026 season, including three starters. They will nonetheless be expected to improve on their 52-30 record from the previous year.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Rockets rumors: Cam Whitmore was nearly traded to Suns for Kevin Durant

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-why-rockets-traded-cam-whitmore-wizards-over-other-offers');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Why Rockets traded Cam Whitmore to Wizards over other offers');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Cam-Whitmore-during-pregame-warmups.jpg"><figcaption>Erik Williams-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Why Rockets traded Cam Whitmore to Wizards over other offers</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-06T07:55:58-07:00">July 6th, 7:55am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-06T07:55:58-07:00">July 6th, 7:55am</time><address><a>Ben Strauss</a>Ben Strauss is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. He is a die-hard NFL fan who cheers for the Detroit Lions. He has previously written fantasy football content for IDPGuys and ImportantNonsense.com.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The 2025 NBA offseason is going full steam ahead. The 2025 NBA Draft is in the rearview mirror and free agency is in full swing. New reporting on the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-acquiring-cam-whitmore-in-trade-with-rockets">Cam Whitmore trade</a> reveals why the Rockets traded him to the Wizards over other landing spots.</p><p>Houston traded forward Cam Whitmore to Washington <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1941591853255753840" rel="noopener">in exchange for two second-round picks</a>, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.</p><p>The Rockets reportedly worked with Whitmore and his reps at WME Basketball over multiple weeks to find his new home. Houston’s front office <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45678556/sources-rockets-trade-whitmore-wizards-two-seconds" rel="noopener">had multiple offers on the table</a> for Whitmore. But Whitmore wanted to land somewhere that gave him “a legitimate chance to thrive in his career,” Charania reported.</p><p>This trade came on the heels of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-kevin-durant-breaks-silence-trade-teasing-fans">Rockets acquiring star Kevin Durant</a> from the Suns.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/2023-nba-draft-live-tracker-updates-picks-trades-grades-analysis">Rockets drafted Whitmore with the 23rd overall pick</a> in the 2023 NBA Draft. Whitmore will now now pursue a future with the Wizards. He grew up in Maryland, which makes the move to Washington almost a return home.</p><p>He will turn 21 years old later this year and is just beginning his professional career. Whitmore did not get many opportunities to prove himself with the Rockets. In fact, he only averaged 16.2 minutes per game in the 2024-25 season.</p><p>But many NBA scouts are still impressed with Whitmore’s skills and believe he could thrive in Washington.</p><p>Whitmore has made the most of his limited minutes early in this career. He averaged 10.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game over his first few seasons in the NBA. Whitmore also has a career field goal percentage of 44.9%, which is quite efficient for a big. This bodes well for Whitmore’s ability to earn himself a role with the Wizards during the 2025-26 season.</p><p>Now that Whitmore has joined the team, he will have plenty of opportunity to show his worth.</p><p>Whitmore will join a host of new players on the Wizards next season. Washington acquired CJ McCollum and Kelly Olynyk in exchange for Jordan Poole and Saddiq Bey earlier this offseason. They also added <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/washington-wizards-2025-nba-draft-grades">Tre Johnson with the sixth overall pick</a> of the 2025 NBA Draft.</p><p>Washington’s current starting lineup should include Bub Carrington, CJ McCollum, Bilal Coulibaly, and Alex Sarr. Obviously this could change before the start of the season.</p><p>Either way, Whitmore should have plenty of opportunities to prove himself during the 2025-26 NBA season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Why Rockets traded Cam Whitmore to Wizards over other offers

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/nba-rumors-rockets-suns-kevin-durant-deal-could-expand-historic-7-team-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Rockets-Suns Kevin Durant deal could expand to historic 7-team trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Suns-superstar-Kevin-Durant.jpg"><figcaption>Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Rockets-Suns Kevin Durant deal could expand to historic 7-team trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-02T20:08:54-07:00">July 2nd, 8:08pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-02T20:23:04-07:00">July 2nd, 8:23pm</time><address><a>Scotty White</a>Scotty White is a graduate of the University of Michigan and has been in the sports journalism industry since 2020. He has covered athletics at the University of Michigan and is now serving as an Associate Editor, Chicago Bulls beat writer, and Michigan football reporter at ClutchPoints.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-kevin-durant-breaks-silence-trade-teasing-fans">Kevin Durant getting traded to the Houston Rockets</a> was already big news, but it sounds like it could be getting even bigger. According to a new report from <i>The</i> <i>Athletic</i>, this could end up being a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/live-blogs/nba-free-agency-2025-offseason-trade-rumors-news/fnwUjcuMFEqi/lhPLsGU42tSk/" rel="noopener">record-breaking trade</a>. The Rockets and Suns are looking into expanding the trade to include seven total teams. The new teams mentioned are the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves.</p><p>“League sources tell The Athletic that the Rockets and Suns are working on expanding the Kevin Durant trade into a deal that would involve a league-record seven teams,” the report states. “Other teams involved in negotiations at the moment include the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves, league sources say.”</p><p>While there is still some stuff to finalize here, it sounds like much of this expanded Kevin Durant trade has already gone down.</p><p>“At least in the iterations of the deal discussed so far, most of the recognizable names are from trades that have already been agreed to and reported but not yet finalized,” the report continued.</p><p>A lot of what is expected to go down has already been agreed upon, but they haven’t and can’t be finalized yet.</p><p>“The Hawks would be sending Clint Capela to the Rockets in what would become a sign-and-trade, league sources say,” the report adds. “Durant would go to Houston. The previously reported return for him, including Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green, would go to Phoenix. Only five players who were in the NBA last season are being discussed in the current iteration of the trade, as of now: Durant, Brooks, Green, Clint Capela and Daeqwon Plowden, league sources say. The rest of the players being discussed are all from already-agreed-upon draft-night trades that are yet to be finalized and can’t be until July 6.”</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-news-john-hollinger-blasts-houston-no-wings-team-strategy">Kevin Durant to the Rockets</a> is still the big aspect of this trade, but still, it could set an NBA record.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Rockets-Suns Kevin Durant deal could expand to historic 7-team trade

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-shams-declares-hawks-rockets-cooking-in-free-agency');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Shams declares Hawks, Rockets ‘cooking’ in free agency');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Jalen-Johnson-2.jpg"><figcaption>Dale Zanine-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Shams declares Hawks, Rockets ‘cooking’ in free agency</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-01T08:30:35-07:00">July 1st, 8:30am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-01T08:30:35-07:00">July 1st, 8:30am</time><address><a>Malik Brown</a>Malik Brown is a multimedia reporter based in Atlanta who covers the Hawks and Dream for ClutchPoints. Malik has worked in entertainment and sports, and he specializes in the NBA and NFL.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Hawks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hawks-news-the-role-trae-young-played-atlanta-early-free-agency-spree">first day of NBA free agency</a> is always exciting, and of course, people love to name early winners and losers as soon as the day is over. There are two teams in particular that have <a href="https://x.com/awfulannouncing/status/1940039557820424351" rel="noopener">caught the eyes</a> of the rest of the league, and they’ve been given their props, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.</p><p>“When I talk to people around the league, they say the Hawks and the Rockets are ‘cooking,'” Charania said on ESPN.</p><p>“You think about it from Atlanta’s perspective, going out to get Nickeil Alexander-Walker, a big-tie two-way type of player, he had a big-time playoff run,” Charania continued. “Then you go get Luke Kennard, he’s been one of the best shooters in the NBA. Atlanta got Kristaps Porzingis as well.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Shams Charania: "When I talk to people around the league, they say the Hawks and the Rockets are 'cooking.'" <a href="https://t.co/NAt9TAw6o8">pic.twitter.com/NAt9TAw6o8</a></p><p>— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) <a href="https://twitter.com/awfulannouncing/status/1940039557820424351?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 1, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Houston has done even more business than Atlanta overall. We know about the Kevin Durant trade, but they go and get Clint Capela at center, and then Dorian Finney-Smith, and he was the most interesting free agent out there.”</p><p>Both the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hawks-news-nickeil-alexander-walker-sign-and-trade-with-timberwolves">Hawks and Rockets were aggressive</a> to start out free agency, but they also made moves prior to help improve their team. It would be interesting to see if they plan on making more moves as the free agency period continues.</p><h2><b>Hawks, Rockets working hard in free agency</b></h2><p>Not only does Charania think that the Hawks did their big one in free agency, but ESPN’s Tim Bontemps also thinks the Hawks have positioned themselves to be atop the Eastern Conference.</p><p>“The Hawks have gotten a bunch of guys that want to be there, who have shooting and perimeter defense,” Bontemps said on Get Up. “This is a team I think is now a top 4 in the East, better than the Celtics… better than the Milwaukee Bucks. Atlanta is on the rise in the East.”</p><p>With the current landscape of the Eastern Conference, there’s a good chance that the Hawks could be one of the top teams in the East if they can stay healthy.</p><p>For the Rockets, they were one of the top teams in the Western Conference last season, and things shouldn’t change with Durant, Finney-Smith, and Capela on the team. They have proven veterans on their team, and one of the best scorers the NBA has ever seen in Durant. In a crowded conference, the Rockets have what it takes to go up against some of the best.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Shams declares Hawks, Rockets ‘cooking’ in free agency

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-rockets-hawks-fighting-make-multiple-wing-splashes');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Rockets, Hawks fighting to make multiple wing splashes');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Dorian-Finney-Smith-2.jpg"><figcaption>Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Rockets, Hawks fighting to make multiple wing splashes</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-30T14:30:05-07:00">June 30th, 2:30pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-30T14:30:05-07:00">June 30th, 2:30pm</time><address><a>Troy Finnegan</a>Troy Finnegan is a Senior Editor and College Sports Lead at ClutchPoints. He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder in 2023 with a degree in journalism and minors in communications and sports media, as well as a critical sports studies certificate. He has had a passion for sports his entire life, and enjoys covering and writing about all sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Hawks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>NBA free agency is about to open and the frenzy of player movement will take over the league in the coming weeks. Teams are eager to make big swings and improve their rosters, and the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-rumors-rockets-biggest-threat-steal-away-key-lakers-free-agent">Houston Rockets and Atlanta Hawks are two teams</a> trying to take a step up into the tier of contenders in their respective conferences.</p><p>In order to do that, both teams need to add more depth on the wing. From the sounds of it, it looks like they are <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/the-absolute-latest-nba-free-agency?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=167190832&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=39f60&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">both in good position</a> to do so, with the Rockets eyeing both Dorian Finney-Smith and Luke Kennard, according to Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line.</p><p>“In addition to its well-chronicled interest in Dorian Finney-Smith, Houston wants to explore the feasibility of signing Luke Kennard,” Fischer and Stein wrote.”</p><p>Meanwhile, out in the Eastern Conference, the Hawks are hot after former Minnesota Timberwolves guard after Nickeil Alexander-Walker in addition to Kennard.</p><p>“The Hawks and Nuggets, sources say, also have interest in Kennard,” Fischer and Stein reported. “Atlanta landing both Kennard and Nickeil Alexander-Walker would mark noted boosts to its wing rotation.”</p><p>At the moment, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/rockets-news-houston-emerges-as-serious-dorian-finney-smith-suitor">Rockets seem to be the frontrunner for Finney-Smith</a> after he opted out of the final year of his contact with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Florida product is a big wing who can defend and shoots the 3-ball better than the league average, so he will fit right in next to Kevin Durant with the new-look Rockets if they can finalize a deal.</p><p>On the Hawks side, Alexander-Walker would add another long, versatile defender to a wing room that is already loaded with talent in Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson and Zaccharie Risacher. Alexander-Walker can also handle the ball some on offense and knock down shots from the perimeter, making him a coveted target in free agency.</p><p>Kennard is one of the best bench shooters in this class, so it comes as no surprise that playoff contenders everywhere are after his services.</p><p>If the Hawks and Rockets can get their hands on some of these top wings in this free agent class, they could both be in position to make deep playoff runs next season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Rockets, Hawks fighting to make multiple wing splashes

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-rockets-biggest-threat-steal-away-key-lakers-free-agent');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Rockets the biggest threat to steal away key Lakers free agent');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Rockets-biggest-threat-steal-away-key-Lakers-free-agent.jpg"><figcaption>© Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Rockets the biggest threat to steal away key Lakers free agent</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-30T08:23:42-07:00">June 30th, 8:23am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-30T08:23:42-07:00">June 30th, 8:23am</time><address><a>Preston Byers</a>Preston Byers is an experienced writer and journalist who currently serves as an associate editor for ClutchPoints and as a staff writer at The Vindicator and Tribune Chronicle, where he covers sports in the Mahoning Valley. Previously, Preston worked as an associate editor for Dot Esports and a site expert for FanSided's Union and Blue.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers">The Los Angeles Lakers</a> apparently have some stiff competition in <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-curiosity-key-player-million-decision">signing Dorian Finney-Smith</a> this summer.</p><p>With Finney-Smith, for whom the Lakers traded in late December, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-contenders-lurking-dorian-finney-smith-declines-option">declining his player option</a>, it seems that the Lakers will have to really fight for him in free agency or risk losing him to one of the most active teams in the offseason, the Houston Rockets, who NBA insiders <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/the-latest-freshest-and-hottest-nba?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=167147450&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=39f60&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">say are the</a> “foremost threat” to pry him him away from L.A.</p><p>“The Rockets have use of their full $14.1 million midlevel exception to offer to Finney-Smith even after their considerable roster business in recent days,” Marc Stein and Jake Fischer wrote for The Stein Line. “There were strong suggestions Sunday that Houston is preparing a four-year offer for Finney-Smith … but perhaps at a figure shy of the full MLE amount.</p><p>“The Lakers, meanwhile, remain hopeful of retaining Finney-Smith. The 32-year-old’s decision to bypass his $15.4 million player option for next season — when that move wasn’t accompanied by the announcement that he had agreed to terms with the Lakers on a new multiyear contract to replace it — surprised numerous observers leaguewide.”</p><p>Finney-Smith, if he is able to sign a three or four-year deal, likely will make less per year over the course of the contract than he would have had he exercised his player option. However, as he is already in his early 30s and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-key-lebron-james-luka-doncic-teammate-surgery">he had ankle surgery this offseason</a>, it does seem to make sense for the 3-and-D specialist to seize on the opportunity to guarantee himself potentially $40 or 50 million over a longer time period.</p><p>An undrafted free agent in 2016, Finney-Smith quickly caught on with the Dallas Mavericks as a rookie, playing about 20 minutes per game. He eventually earned a regular starting spot and became a valuable piece to the Mavericks while playing alongside Luka Doncic, who has called Finney-Smith one of his favorite teammates ever.</p><p>Early last year, Finney-Smith was dealt to the Brooklyn Nets in the Kyrie Irving trade. Nearly 11 months later,<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-dangelo-russell-trade-nets-4-player-trade"> the Nets traded him to the Lakers</a>, who soon thereafter acquired Doncic from the Mavericks in a stunning trade.</p><p>In 43 games with the Lakers, Finney-Smith averaged 7.9 points and 3.6 rebounds while shooting 39.8% on 3-pointers.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Rockets the biggest threat to steal away key Lakers free agent

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-ty-jerome-suitors-expected-cavs-exit');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Ty Jerome suitors lining up amid expected Cavs exit');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Ty-Jerome.jpg"><figcaption>David Richard-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Ty Jerome suitors lining up amid expected Cavs exit</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-29T08:15:26-07:00">June 29th, 8:15am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-29T08:15:26-07:00">June 29th, 8:15am</time><address><a>Troy Finnegan</a>Troy Finnegan is a Senior Editor and College Sports Lead at ClutchPoints. He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder in 2023 with a degree in journalism and minors in communications and sports media, as well as a critical sports studies certificate. He has had a passion for sports his entire life, and enjoys covering and writing about all sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>This NBA free agency cycle doesn’t have the stars that it sometimes does, but there are still plenty of quality players who can make an impact in a playoff series that will be hitting the open market. Ty Jerome, who played some of the best basketball of his career at the end of the 2024-25 regular season with the Cleveland Cavaliers, is one of the names on that list.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/ranking-3-best-ty-jerome-free-agency-destinations-leaves-cavaliers">Jerome is hitting the open market</a> as an unrestricted free agent this summer, and he should have a pretty solid market for his services. However, the Cavs likely don’t have any room for him on the roster or in the rotation for him after <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cavs-news-acquiring-lonzo-ball-trade-bulls">trading for Lonzo Ball from the Chicago Bulls</a>.</p><p>However, there will be plenty of teams that would love to have Jerome’s size and shooting ability in the backcourt off the bench. The Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic and Houston Rockets are four <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/siegels-scoop-latest-warriors-jonathan-kuminga-nba-free-agency-intel">teams that could make a run</a> at the Virginia product, according to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.</p><p>“After trading for Ball, it looks increasingly unlikely that the Cleveland Cavaliers Sixth Man of the Year finalist Ty Jerome will return in free agency,” Siegel wrote. “Plenty of teams will hold interest in potentially signing Jerome using their full mid-level exception in free agency. Keep an eye on teams like the Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, and Sacramento Kings as potential landing spots for Jerome. These four teams have a key need for backcourt depth.”</p><p>The Charlotte Hornets and Memphis Grizzlies are <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/sunday-best-lots-more-of-the-latest" rel="noopener">two teams that are also interested</a> in Jerome, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line.</p><p>“Charlotte and Memphis are two teams that keep coming up as likely suitors for Ty Jerome, who is now regarded as a lock to leave Cleveland to find the deal he is known to be seeking that starts at (or at worst adjacent) to the full $14.1 million midlevel exception,” Stein wrote.</p><p>Zach Lowe also mentioned the Golden State Warriors as a potential landing spot for Jerome after he played one season there in 2022-23.</p><p>Jerome struggled at times in the Cavs’ second-round loss to the Indiana Pacers in the playoffs, but he was being a bit overtasked due to the injuries in Cleveland, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/darius-garland-toe-surgery-announced-amid-cavs-trade-rumors">particularly to Darius Garland’s toe.</a> If one of these teams in free agency is able to scale his role back down, he could be a big pickup this offseason.</p><p>The 27-year old played in 70 games this season, scoring a career-high 12.5 points per game while shooting an incredible 43.9% from 3-point range. While it won’t make the biggest headlines, a deal for Jerome is something that could play a major factor over the next few seasons.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Ty Jerome suitors lining up amid expected Cavs exit

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-houston-aiming-re-sign-3-key-role-players-free-agency-kevin-durant-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rockets rumors: Rockets aiming to re-sign 3 role players after Kevin Durant trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Rockets-forward-Jeff-Green.jpg"><figcaption>Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Rockets rumors: Rockets aiming to re-sign 3 role players after Kevin Durant trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-27T11:53:40-07:00">June 27th, 11:53am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-27T11:53:40-07:00">June 27th, 11:53am</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Houston Rockets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After the Houston <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/houston-rockets/rockets-rumors-fred-vanvleet-sign-50-million-contract-extension">Rockets reportedly expressed interest in re-signing Fred VanVleet</a> to an extension, they’re aiming to bring back others following their trade with the Phoenix Suns for All-Star Kevin Durant. The Rockets’ role players, including forwards Jae’Sean Tate and Jeff Green, as well as backup guard Aaron Holiday, are expected to reach new deals in the coming weeks, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.</p><p>Ahead of free agency, the Rockets <a href="https://x.com/ShamsCharania/status/1938648716040380712" rel="noopener">are looking to bring back</a> a handful of their own, per Charania’s X, formerly Twitter.</p><p>“The Houston Rockets intend to sign their free agents Jae’Sean Tate, Aaron Holiday, and Jeff Green on new contracts to bring them all back for next season,” Charania reported.</p><p>In the final act of what will be his 19th NBA season, Green averaged 5.4 points on 50.4% shooting for the Rockets last season. Holiday posted 5.5 points while shooting at a 39.8% clip from three-point range, and Tate averaged 3.6 points in a reduced role from 2023-24, playing 11.3 minutes per game last season.</p><p>However, amid Rockets rumors in the aftermath of trading Dillon Brooks and starting forward Jalen Green to the Suns, there will be increased opportunities for Rockets’ reserves, such as Green, Tate, and Holiday.</p><h2><b>How Kevin Durant ‘controlled trade process’ to get to Rockets</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Rockets-head-coach-Ime-Udoka-Rockets-Kevin-Durant.jpg"><figcaption>Thomas Shea-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Due to his history with head coach Ime Udoka, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-how-kevin-durant-controlled-trade-process-to-get-to-rockets">Kevin Durant may have some influence over his trade</a> to the Rockets. Udoka, as an assistant coach with the Nets, grew close to Durant, a connection that many speculate factored into the Rockets’ <a href="https://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/280912/Ime-Udoka-Low-Trade-Price-Led-To-Rockets-Trading-For-Kevin-Durant" rel="noopener">decision to trade</a> for Kevin, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.</p><p>“Now they can get Kevin Durant and get themselves better,” Windhorst said. “And still have these pieces that they can keep or trade. The Rockets had this happen because Kevin Durant controlled this process.”</p><p>Besides Durant, head coach Ime Udoka played a considerable role amid Rockets rumors, stating that a player like Durant can exponentially improve the team, along with the younger talent.</p><p>“I believe he wanted to have his young team grow, but something happened the last few weeks,” Windhorst said. “Ime Udoka, who had him in his Brooklyn—Royal Ivey is on his staff—he was his teammate at Texas. He wanted him. He went to ownership and front office and said ‘Can we can get Kevin Durant? Get him.’”</p><p>Udoka can now pair Durant with All-Star Alperen Sengun, and most likely, with Fred VanVleet running the show at point guard, as the starting point guard is reportedly close to reaching a potential two-year, $50 million extension.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

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