Houston Rockets: Goals for Kevin Durant's Tenure

Rafael Stone and Ime Udoka started the offseason with a bang in Houston, as they worked together to bring Kevin Durant to the Rockets. The move shows that the Houston Rockets are in win-now mode, but also kept a lot of core pieces for the future.

Durant is one of the greatest scorers and players in NBA history. Bringing him to the Rockets makes them instant contenders for a championship next year. The biggest goal and expectation with the forward is to win the Finals. It was reported that the veteran wants to retire and win in Houston, and would take a pay cut rather than the full maximum on a contract extension.

Houston's "big three" is now Durant, Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson. Having Durant on this team is going to boost the development of the young players a ton.

Reed Sheppard is going into his sophomore season, and he can learn about catch-and-shooting. Jabari Smith Jr. is going into his fourth season and should be able to pick up a lot of advice about getting to his spot for a pull-up jumper. Thompson can learn to improve his handle and take some shooting tips as well.

Every single young player on the roster has multiple things that they can learn from the NBA champion. This trade is great for the Rockets in order to win very soon, but also a great trade for their future, due to not trading too much to get Durant.

The Rockets have a shooter now. Not only do they have a shooter, but they also have arguably the greatest scorer of all time on their team. Houston's biggest problem has been its shooting, and Stone just fixed that in one trade. A significant expectation now is that the young athletes on the roster will improve their shooting and learn new ways to score. Durant is a lethal scoring threat and has all the tools to make the players on the roster better.

All in all, this trade sends a message to the league. That message is that the Rockets are here and will contend for a championship very soon.