Rockets Still Paying Price for Russell Westbrook Trade

The Houston Rockets tried making a bold move after falling in the second round of the 2019 NBA Playoffs, trading Chris Paul to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Russell Westbrook, two first-round picks and two pick swaps.

Bleacher Report writer Zach Buckley slammed the deal and proved why the Rockets are still paying for their misfortunes.

"In July 2019, the Rockets sacrificed a significant amount of their future flexibility for the chance to extend their contention window with James Harden," Buckley writes. "Houston was knocked out of the second round and virtually everyone skipped town after. Westbrook, Mike D'Antoni and Daryl Morey all exited during that offseason, while Harden forced his way out a few weeks into the 2020-21 season. The Rockets plunged into a years-long rebuild after, a project made more difficult by the fact that they were without these assets. They just lost their first of the two first-round picks (Nikola Topić, No. 12 in 2024) and are still on the hook for a top-four protected pick in 2026."

It remains to be seen what would have happened if the Rockets had held on to Paul for just one more year with Harden. Perhaps the Rockets would have made it further in the 2020 NBA Playoffs. But that's the past, and the Rockets have done everything in their power to try to move on from it. They still have the pick swap in 2026, but Houston has a brand new team that has the Harden era looking like a distant memory.