The Rockets traded multiple future first-round picks in the 2019 offseason and will enter the ’19/20 season with a group of core players who are nearly all in their 30s. While the team has made deep playoff runs in recent years, the clock is ticking on the opportunity to win a championship with the current roster, as owner Tilman Fertitta acknowledged in a conversation with Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.
“I think we put ourselves in the position that if we don’t win it in the next three or four years, we probably aren’t going to win [a title] in the next 10 years,” Fertitta said. “This is our window, and we need to seize the opportunity.”
Houston surrendered its 2024 first-round pick (top-four protected), and 2026 first-rounder (top-four protected), along with two potential pick swaps, to acquire Russell Westbrook this summer, which will limit the team’s flexibility to make blockbuster trades going forward — and will reduce the club’s ability to add young talent down the road. However, Fertitta sounds ready to go all-in with the current group over the next couple years.
“This is the time,” Fertitta told Haynes. “I just re-signed Eric Gordon who is 30 and I’ve got Russell and James [Harden] and Eric and Clint Capela for the next four years. P.J. [Tucker] is 34 and our two stars are 30. So this is their window. Let’s seize the opportunity.”
In the wake of Gordon’s extension, all five of the players Fertitta mentioned are under contract for at least the next two years, with Westbrook and Harden locked up through at least 2021/22 and Capela’s and Gordon’s deals extending even further. Additionally, the Warriors team that eliminated Houston from the postseason in each of the last two springs is no longer quite so loaded, with Kevin Durant now in Brooklyn and Andre Iguodala in Memphis.
The Rockets’ championship upside may ultimately come down to the backcourt fit between Westbrook and Harden, and Fertitta sounds confident that the pairing will succeed, given Westbrook’s “superior” athleticism and the former MVPs’ existing relationship.
“It’s so important to have the right chemistry,” Fertitta said. “These are two guys that grew up in L.A. together and have known each other most of their lives. And they can talk to each other. You can say things to each other and the other would not get offended because you’re lifelong buddies. And so I think the chemistry’s going to be great this year.”
This coming from can’t-pay-the-tax Fertitta? HAHAHAHAHAHA
They’re just trying to keep their future luxury tax bills from being outrageous by avoiding the repeater tax which makes them even higher. The new Nene contract was custom made for an Iggy trade which will put them above the tax line. In the 2020-21 season they will be spending close to $125M on their starting five alone, around $17M below the $142M tax threshold (they will easily exceed that after filling out the roster). He will be paying millions in luxury taxes over the next few years.
Same thing they said the last 3 years.
And so what’s wrong?
“I” signed this guy and “I” have that guy. Not a whole lot of “we” mentioned here.
It’s just going to be a real interesting year in the West. I can’t wait to see how it all plays out. Can the Rockets advance to the NBA finals? Maybe.
A championship with Harden and Westbrook as the 2 best players? LOL
Yeah-they’ve been saying that for awhile now. We’ll see…DECENT team. RW IS TOUGHER than CP3, IMO. That’ll help! Bringing back the vets: EG, Nene, PJ, etc…will help. IDK….this team either will win or be like famous teams of yore who couldn’t get past…
Will be more interesting to see what they do in ‘20-21 with the new coach
I think this coming season is actually the final year of the Rockets’ championship window. Win or bust this season. That window began with the Harden-Howard experiment then leveled up during the Harden-CP3 era. Came tantalizingly close 2 seasons ago but we all know what happened. Rockets were expected to win the West last season bec of all the internal problems & injuries of the Warriors but CP3’s heart was no longer in Houston. Heartbreaking ending for the Rockets fans.
Those may have been Fertita’s best quotes since getting into this business.