The Houston Rockets are preparing for a busy offseason and a Rajon Rondo trade could be in the works along with a Kevin Love deal and the team likely will have to trade Chandler Parsons, Omer Asik, Jeremy Lin or Patrick Beverley to make those moves work and if not, they could target free agent names like Carmelo Anthony and Kyle Lowry to create a big 3 for James Harden and Dwight Howard.
The Rockets have a number of ways they can try and tackle things this offseason and reports have Carmelo Anthony as a major target along with a Rajon Rondo trade, but those two moves would have to be separate and could not both happen based on money. The team likely will take a chance and see how the Celtics are feeling regarding a Rondo trade and if they get some traction, they could move in that direction over Anthony. According to Pro Basketball Talk, the Chicago Bulls and Rockets are the two teams that are going to push for Anthony over the Knicks and those are two teams that he would consider.
The Bulls will have to trade Carlos Boozer if they want to bring in Anthony, as he is making a ton of money and his salary was $15 million last season and he could be traded or have the amnesty clause used on him. Boozer is the key to making the Anthony move happen and the Bulls are also ancillary players when it comes to the Kevin Love trade, as they have talent to deal if they want to. The Rockets have a major decision to make regarding Chandler Parsons as well, as he could be a restricted free agent now or an unrestricted free agent next season and on top of that, the Celtics like him.
According to ESPN.com reporter Marc Stein, the Rockets and the Celtics spoke about a Rondo deal last season and the trade included Omer Asik, but the Rockets refused to add Parsons and that is why the deal broke down. Parsons is considered nearly untradeable by GM Daryl Morey, as the team got him in the second round and he has turned into a borderline All Star player. The Rockets may have to part ways with him though to get Rondo, as the Celtics will not just take Asik and his money for nothing.
The Rockets have to move either Asik or Jeremy Lin to clear cap space for Melo or Rondo and that could be tough, as both are getting paid a ton of money and they are in the last years of their contracts. The expiring nature may help get a deal done, but teams will not want to take that money without getting someone like Parsons. The players are getting paid $15 million in salary next year and the Rockets will have to clear that space somehow to make either of the big moves. The Rockets have to decide on Parsons option by the end of the month of June and then they will have to weigh whether to sign him now along with the prospects of getting Carmelo Anthony or Rajon Rondo. The team also could go after Kyle Lowry if they can't pull off a trade with the Celtics.