2017-18 Finish: 37-45

Season Highlight: I thought GM Vitticus did a good job in his first year as an NLL GM. The Rockets were always in the playoff hunt, despite the constant injury problems of their star player, Hassan Whiteside. I liked that he had a clear direction and knew exactly how he wanted this team to play, and the type of players that he targeted in this pursuit. Vitticus was also very open and revealing about his strategy and objectives in his news articles, which always provided great insight.

Season Lowlight: The Rockets lost 1 extra game this season compared to 2016-17 and this would prove costly, as this Rockets squad would miss the playoffs by this one game. Well, they missed by 2 games due to tie-breaker rules, but you can see where I am going with this. You’d think, if Hassan Whiteside was able to play more than 57 games, that this team would have qualified out West.

Best Trade: Trading Cole Aldrich, Isaiah Thomas and Mindaugas Kuzminskas for Tobias Harris, Troy Daniels, Maxi Kleber and a 1st

In a season of very few trades by the Rockets, compared to the NLL average, this was clearly the best. Here the erratic and very undersized IT and bit pieces are moved for the more valuable and stable Tobias Harris, bit pieces and a 1^st round pick (DeAnthony Melton). While Thomas wasn’t great, barely played and brings too much drama and unknown this free agency, Harris personifies the modern day NLL player that most teams are now trying to find, an athlete with size, length and that can play multiple forward positions.

Worst Trade: Trading Gordon Hayward for Wilson Chandler, Timothy Hardaway and a 2nd

I actually liked this trade for Houston, due to the uncertainty surrounding how Hayward returns from such a nasty injury, but the NLL consensus was that it was a sub-par return for such a star player. Vitticus was quoted as saying that he didn’t want to ride the season out with Hayward on the IR, and instead try and make the playoffs. So the fact that the team would eventually miss them anyway, makes this the worst trade.

Other Notable Trades:

Trading DeAnthony Melton for Delon Wright and a 2nd

Way too early to tell on this one, Melton has yet to debut, Wright has been around a little, but Vitticus wanted the taller guard.

Trading Quinn Cook for a 2nd

I really like Cook, and offered a very similar deal earlier, but Vitticus came back too late after my TPE had expired. So Detroit was able to swoop in and get a very intriguing player.

Free Agency:

The Rockets starters are all locked away for next season, however they did lose a little bench depth, already having renounced Al Jefferson, Tim Frazier and Dante Cunningham. Darius Miller and DeAndre Liggins also appear headed for the exit. Yogi Ferrell is a restricted free agent and should be back however. The Rockets project to have roughly 11 million of cap space, and 92 GM points heading into free agency, so should at the very least be able to find 1 or 2 very solid rotation players.

Star:

Hassan Whiteside- If he played 82 games, the Rockets probably make the playoffs and this guy probably wins the MVP. He averaged 26 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals and almost 2 blocks a game. Albeit in only 57 games due to injuries. But there is no doubting, when healthy, this guy’s star shines brighter than most, at least in the NLL.

Goat:

Tim Frazier- The Rockets entered the season with a need for a point guard to really take control and cement themselves in that starting role. Not only did Tim Frazier not do that, he also struggled as a backup. Only averaging 5 points and 3 assists, to go with 1 turnover and 36% shooting. He has since been renounced.

Draft Grades (from Insider):

#2- PF Jaren Jackson Jr.- The Rockets got pipped. They played their cards close, but I guess not quite close enough and at the death of it, they had to look at the 2nd option. But, as 2nd options go, JJJ should fit right in to the Houston fold whether they keep Hassan or not. He projects as a 3&D C in the NBA and he’s an elite defender capable of guarding all 5 positions due to his agility, while also being an elite rim protector. How far he goes will be determined by his offensive growth, but he should always have a place in the league just for his defence. Grade: A

#11- SG Kevin Huerter- So here was the first real aberration from the generally expected. Houston fell in love with the 6’7 sweet shooter citing his IQ and elite NBA level skill as the reasons to take him above the perhaps more rounded? and athletic types projected at this point of the draft. Some GM paranoia saw him not consider trading down a few slots to take their man instead, but in the end if you’re happy and get the guy you think is the pick of the bunch, does it really matter? All in all, he’s a very safe pick and short have a long role playing career.  Grade: B-

#28- PG De'Anthony Melton (Since Traded)- The Rockets already took one leap at 11, and they went an even bigger one here grabbing Melton who mocked out at 46. The talent in the 2nd round though is pretty interchangeable and Melton had shown a great knowledge for the game and use of his physical tools on defence particularly. Will he develop into a starter as you might hope at 28 with his limited handle and lack of explosion? Grade: C+

The Future-

The Rockets have may have an interesting decision regarding Hassan Whiteside in the 2019 off-season, but for now he is still with the team, and if healthy, combined with some solid, versatile wings such as Tobias Harris, Timothy Hardaway, Dion Waiters and Wilson Chandler, this team should be again competing for the playoffs in the Western Conference. Add in a couple of lottery picks in Jaren Jackson Junior and Kevin Huerter, and you suddenly see a pretty solid roster taking shape, one that should be tasting post season action in its GM’s second season.