Less than 24 hours after landing the No. 4 overall pick via the NBA’s 2023 draft lottery, reports are already emerging that Houston Rockets general manager Rafael Stone is open to trading it.
Had Houston defied the 14.0% odds to land the No. 1 pick (which in-state rival San Antonio did) for uber-talented French prospect Victor Wembanyama, the Rockets would almost certainly have kept the selection. But in other scenarios, Houston is open-minded as it attempts to transition to the next phase of its rebuild.
Kelly Iko of The Athletic writes:
Things are still preliminary, but Houston expects there to be a good amount of interest in acquiring the pick and will listen to inquiries — but are also open to potentially moving down or acquiring a win-now veteran if an opportunity presents itself. This reality, in addition to the potential of selecting yet another talented young player, gives them added flexibility and optimism as they enter into the next phase of their rebuild.
The Houston Rockets have the No.4 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
Now, the real work begins. https://t.co/GUJVP3ip34
— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) May 17, 2023
Meanwhile, NBA draft expert Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report writes that Houston could also attempt to trade up.
“Expect the Rockets to try to move up to No. 2 for [Scoot] Henderson, who’d form an explosive pair with Jalen Green,” Wasserman writes in his mock draft. “But [Amen] Thompson is the better passer with far more size and similarly special explosiveness.”
There 2023 draft doesn’t take place until Thursday, June 22, so there are many weeks for Stone and the Rockets to consider their options.
Full 2023 mock draft with the official draft order as the NBA combine scrimmages kick off https://t.co/85Sq6lwmEK
— Jonathan Wasserman (@NBADraftWass) May 17, 2023
