The Houston Rockets are coming into February as one of the better teams in the western conference heading into the second half of the season and as the trading deadline gets closer the team could get involved in some moves and names like Kyle Lowry and Rajon Rondo could be options for Jeremy Lin and Omer Asik as the Feb. 20 date nears.
The Rockets had previously engaged in talks with the Boston Celtics about Asik and as the deadline gets closer the two sides could make a deal. According to ESPN.com, the Rockets are an option for Kyle Lowry if the Toronto Raptors decide to trade him and as the deadline gets closer that looks like more of a possibility. Lowry has been playing very well this season and had an All-Star argument and now the Raptors are poised to make a deal, as he can leave as a free agent and with Masai Ujiri in the middle of rebuilding, a move like that could be an option.
Ujiri has to walk a fine line between rebuilding and pushing his team to win with the way they are playing and after they improved following the Rudy Gay trade, he has some fan credibility, but to keep it he will have to be smart. Lowry has been very solid this season, but if Ujiri knows he will end up leaving, the fans will understand a trade at this point and the Rockets could jump into things. Lin has been playing better as of late and had a triple double in his last game, but that hasn't stopped reports of the team considering a trade and as the Feb. 20 date nears, Daryl Morey will be looking for creative ways to get his team into championship contention.
The Rockets come into the week after a nice win over the Cavaliers and Lin added 11 rebounds and 10 assists along with his double digit scoring and James Harden led the way with 28 points and the Rockets are one of the best teams in the west, but Omer Asik is wasting away on the bench and that could be here a move is made. The team has been mentioned in trade rumors regarding the center since Dwight Howard was signed and now that the deadline is just a couple weeks away, they could get back into talks with the Celtics after that deal almost went down.
Rondo is the wild card and the Celtics have some big decisions to make, as the point guard said he would like to remain in Boston, but that could be an issue depending on how Danny Ainge wants to play things. Rondo is a great player, but with rebuilding coming to the team, contention could be years away and that is why the Rockets could be the ones to swoop in and get him.
