Rockets Might Be Open to Trading Russell Westbrook
Less than six months ago, the
Houston Rockets acquired Russell Westbrook in a deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Chris Paul and several draft picks. Now, rumors have already begun to circulate about the Rockets' willingness to entertain the possibility of trading Westbrook.
"I think Westbrook is available," The Ringer's
Ryen Russillo said,
per Pro Basketball Talk. "We can talk about semantics. Of course, Daryl Morey would trade anyone if he thought it made his team better. Of course, he would trade Westbrook if he could get off of that long-term money, if he thought the assets, the sum of the parts was better than having somebody that’s considered a top-10 player."
The long-term max contract money attached to Westbrook is similar to the problem that they faced with Paul. However, CP3 has three years remaining on his current deal while Westbrook has four. The Rockets may not have been worried about taking such a huge financial burden if it came at the expense of making their franchise player, James Harden, happy.