The Houston Rockets are looking to trade Jeremy Lin and Omer Asik this offseason to try and sign Carmelo Anthony or LeBron James and teams like the NY Knicks, Boston Celtics, Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers or Orlando Magic could be fits for those deals, as the team reportedly has five or six teams ready for the trades, according to ESPN.com.
The Rockets have long been considered an option for Anthony and they have been mentioned in trade rumors involving Lin and Asik since last season. According to ESPN.com, the Rockets and Celtics nearly had a deal involving Omer Asik last season, but the Rockets balked at adding Chandler Parsons, which is what the Celtics needed to get them to take Asik's contract. Lin and Asik have $15 million poison pill deals and they cost a little under nine million on the cap for teams and they have $8.4 million on the salary cap number and since they are expiring contracts, teams could be more willing to make the move.
Lin signed a three year deal with the Rockets and he comes in after averaging 12.5 points and 4.1 assists per game last year, while Asik was benched for a while and after averaging 10 points and 11 rebounds last season, he was down to 5.8 points and 7.9 rebounds in 48 games after playing in all 82 last season.
Anthony opted out of his contract with the Knicks and is now a free agent, while James did the same with Miami, using their early termination options to hit the market. According to ESPN.com, the Rockets are one of a number of teams positioning themselves for a run at the superstars, as the LA Lakers, Clippers, Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls and Cavaliers all are trying to make moves to clear space to make their team the destination for a potential team-up.
The Rockets are in on the team-up deal and they also are in on each of those players individually, as they have been looking at James and Anthony as targets since before the two players opted out and now the chase is on. The Cavaliers feel they have an opening with LeBron losing the finals, while Anthony looks like he is leaving NY even though the team can offer him the most money and the longest deal. Phil Jackson has been proactive at meeting with Anthony, but he has prepared himself and the team for the situation if he leaves and that could make names like Kyle Lowry and Luol Deng targets in free agency.
The Bulls are the top target for Anthony and they have been targeting him since trading Luol Deng earlier in the season and he is the player the team feels can put them over the top. The Bulls may have to make a trade or two to get things done and that may include Carlos Boozer and Taj Gibson along with Jimmy Butler. The team was the best defensive unit in the league, but ranked last in points per game and they want to add more offense to the lineup.
