The NBA’s Southwest Division isn’t exactly packed with talented big men. You’ve got Marc Gasol in Memphis and you’ve got the Spurs’ Tim Duncan. Dallas doesn’t really have a solid post player, unless you want to count Dirk Nowitzki, who rarely goes into the post. New Orleans has a couple of washed up big guys with some talent, but not much to be scared of and the Houston Rockets’ best post player is 6’9” power forward Luis Scola.
We already know things are going to change a little bit next year with New Orleans most likely drafting Anthony Davis, but now the Rockets are looking to make a BIG upgrade in the post as well.
Houston has already made major moves and they might be doing some more wheeling and dealing to try and pick up a couple more first round picks. Supposedly, this is all so they can have a crack at getting Orlando’s All-Star center Dwight Howard.
Howard has been rumored to be wanting out of Orlando for what seems like forever and the Rockets think they can put together a package that’s good enough to entice new Magic GM Rob Hennigan to trade his prized big man. Of course there’s no guarantees and the Rockets may just end up with a bunch of draft picks, but I suppose there could be worse things in life.
If the Rockets were to land Howard, would they be a threat to win the division and poke a hole in the Spurs’ title chances for next year?
Probably not.
Dwight Howard is just one guy, even if he is the most talented center in the league. The Rockets are going to be giving up a lot to get him and it may be a couple of years before they put the right pieces around him to be a really good team.
The Spurs played the Magic twice this year and won both times, and the potential Rockets team with Howard will not be as good as the Orlando team was this year.
Somewhere down the line, if the Rockets can acquire Howard and hold on to him for a while, they could be a very good team. It wouldn’t happen right away, which might mean Howard would want to leave immediately if he’s not happy. That could be a disaster for the Rockets if they give up so much to land him and he leaves after a year. If I were the Rockets, I’d definitely think long and hard about whether or not this is really something I want to go through with.
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