How should the Rockets approach the draft and summer?

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For the first time since 2020, the Houston Rockets are entering draft night without a pick in the first round. Back in 2019, when Houston put all their eggs in the Russell Westbrook basket, they sent their 2026 first-round pick alongside Chris Paul and other assets to acquire Westbrook from the Thunder.

Luckily for Houston, the reverb from that trade will finally subside today, but that begs the question: with no first-round pick, how should the Rockets front office address the draft this off-season, and their squad-building as a whole?

The Rockets could splash on another superstar or keep betting on their young core​

This might be an unpopular take, but I don’t believe Houston’s issue is a lack of star power. Amen Thompson is widely considered to be one of the best athletes the league has seen in years. Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun were both All-Stars last season, and Reed Sheppard rose in prominence down the stretch as a viable guard option with high upside.

Houston’s issue this season was injuries and a severe lack of bench impact. Simply put, Steven Adams and Fred VanVleet being unavailable limited Houston from having positional flexibility, and as a result, they had to stretch their stars to the limit.

There have been reports stating that Houston are planning on a complete bench reset, which includes shipping out Dorian Finney-Smith and retooling in free agency. Taking this approach would be pragmatic, safe, and possibly a big fix to the team’s biggest problem, and considering Rafael Stone’s history of calculated risks, this seems like the cleanest plan.

But, we have to address the idea of buying a superstar, because while building teams by committee brings success, the big prize is usually delivered by a committee plus a superstar.

There’s been a lot of talk about Anthony Edwards possibly being on the market, and it’d be hard not to imagine his great three-point shooting and physical playstyle fitting like a glove into this Rockets team. But, the price would be steep.

With no first-round pick this season, any hypothetical star trade would include costly future capital and current assets.

Houston are just getting out of the Russell Westbrook trade effects, and while one could argue that their young core provides premium future draft capital that can act as a counterweight to a heavy trade package, is it really worth it? I don’t think so, especially when depth was already a major issue last season.

If I’m the Rockets, I’m still sitting tight on the key pieces, working on investing available capital in a bench that shouldn’t be too hard to improve on, and re-evaluating the roster with the return of Steven Adams and Fred VanVleet.

And, that means sitting tight on draft night, even without a first-round pick.

More NBA news:​

• Why Timberwolves' Anthony Edwards is suddenly in NBA trade rumors
• Clippers reportedly hold interest in signing former 28 PPG scorer
• Knicks had clearest path to Giannis Antetokounmpo trade, so what happened?

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