Assessing The Likelihood of a Trade Between The Houston Rockets and Brooklyn Nets

Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai drew attention earlier last week when discussing the franchise’s long-term outlook. Tsai said the franchise was at a crossroads and that the team’s roster would be revamped this offseason to compete in the long run rather than win immediately. Tsai reportedly wants to take a “longer-term approach” to team building.

This development in the Nets owner’s thinking, of course, has implications for the Rockets who possess ownership over Brooklyn’s drafts over the next several years following the 2021 blockbuster trade which sent superstar guard James Harden to Brooklyn. Brooklyn, at the time, was willing to mortgage its future in hopes of forming a Big 3 of superstars by adding Harden to the resident duo of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. The backbone of Brooklyn’s outgoing package was the Nets’ picks from 2022 through 2027.

Already, as a result of the trade, Houston has received Tari Eason, selected with the 17th pick in the 2022 trade and now, the #3 pick in this year’s draft, as a result of swap rights owned in 2024. Brooklyn still owes picks to Houston in 2025 and 2027; Houston has the right to swap picks with the Nets in 2026.

The gamble seemed worthwhile at the time but has put Brooklyn in quite the predicament currently as it seeks to recover from the post Big 3 era. (Harden was traded to Philadelphia and is now with the Clippers, Durant was traded to Phoenix, and Irving was traded to Dallas). With Houston possessing ownership over the Nets’ future drafts, Brooklyn finds itself with a middling roster not good enough to compete, but without the ability to tank games to properly kick off a full rebuild. The team is stuck in middle ground with no clear direction.

The Nets and Rockets were reportedly in talks last trade deadline about a deal which would have sent swingman Mikal Bridges back to Houston for some combination of Brooklyn’s future picks. Ultimately, no deal was consummated. It was believed that shooting guard Jalen Green may have been included in those discussions.

What would it take for Houston to give Brooklyn back its future? With the Rockets looking to make a push for the play-in tournament this season, Bridges would remain a target. Brooklyn also owns the rights to future draft picks of the Suns as a result of the Durant trade last season. Would the Rockets value the Suns’ picks more highly than Brooklyn’s? The calculation on the part of Rockets brass could be that if Houston doesn’t trade Brooklyn back its picks, the Nets could use the Suns picks to upgrade their roster, thus lowering the value of the picks owned by Houston. One possible target could be Cavs guard Donovan Mitchell.

It’s going to be a game of chess worth watching all season starting from draft night all the way up until the deadline.