Another top pick heading to the Rockets

The Houston Rockets’ strategy of acquiring a slew of draft picks over the past three years has once again paid off. With just a 20 percent chance of moving up from their ninth-place draft pick, the ping-pong balls bounced back and landed them the third pick in this summer’s draft.

What’s even more satisfying is that it wasn’t their own pick, but one of the draft picks they received as compensation in the James Harden trade to Brooklyn. Their own pick – number 12 overall – went to Oklahoma City in the Russell Westbrook deal.

In the last three drafts, the Rockets have chosen second (Jalen Green), third (Jabari Smith, Jr.) and fourth (Amen Thompson). They also landed Alperen Sengun (2021), Tari Eason (2022) and Cam Whitmore (2023). All have played significant roles in the Rockets’ improvement, with Sengun falling just short of All-Star status and Green exploding in the second half of the 2023-24 season. All six are considered part of the team’s young core.

The question will be whether or not general manager Rafael Stone keeps the third overall pick or trades him with other assets to nab a veteran. Much has been made of the fact that with the improvements the Rockets made last season, they would be aggressive this offseason to make a deal that would bring in someone who could improve the team immediately instead of another draft pick. high level.

The 2024 draft isn’t considered particularly deep or talented, but the third overall selection should have a lot of value for a team looking to get younger and more athletic. The Rockets’ biggest needs this offseason include shooting and rim protection. They’ll get help for the latter need from Steven Adams, who should be ready for training camp after being traded here this past season. But they desperately need a good shooter.

Could number three become this? We will see.