With the second-worst record in the Western Conference, and coming off a historic 20-game losing streak in recent weeks, draft lottery odds are a popular topic of discussion with the Houston Rockets.
That’s especially the case since Houston is likely to move back several spots in the NBA’s 2021 draft, if they don’t finish in the top four. It all traces back to Oklahoma City, which has the right (from the Chris Paul-Russell Westbrook trade) to exchange Miami’s first-round selection for one from Houston, should it not finish in the top four.
Nonetheless, Rockets GM Rafael Stone said Monday that he isn’t looking at a high draft pick as a necessity. He primarily views the team’s abundance of future draft capital as an opportunity to make trades.
Among Stone’s comments:
I think in terms of the young players in this roster, we do have kind of a young core, along with John [Wall] and Eric [Gordon], a young core that we really like; Christian [Wood] and Jae’Sean [Tate] and KP (Kevin Porter Jr.] and KJ [Martin], all guys under contract going forward. We like those bets. We think we’ve seen growth this year. We obviously want to add to them, but I don’t think we need to do a wholesale tank strategy.
In his post-trade deadline press conference, Stone indicated that he believes Houston’s current record (13-32) isn’t truly reflective of the talent level. Rather, because the Rockets have been “blitzed by injuries,” Stone says they haven’t truly had an opportunity to evaluate the talent in place. That’s what they want to use the rest of the 2020-21 season to do.
“We’ve been ravaged by injuries this year,” Stone said. “Our record reflects that. But in terms of the rebuild, I think our goal is going to be to be competitive, while at the same time really giving our young guys an opportunity to flourish. I think you can do both at the same time.”
Stone’s complete media availability session can be viewed below.
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Rafael Stone says he thinks of draft picks as trade assets
— Adam Spolane (@AdamSpolane) March 29, 2021
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51XHW-5uEe4