Letter Brown s first choice for trading in Houston, Van Jordan can stay in the team, KD can help the Rockets compete for the championship

On May 20, after the Thunder and the Nuggets had just experienced a tiebreak battle, the NBA playoffs rarely entered offseason day, and the four teams in the east and west were making final preparations for the division finals. The teams that have been eliminated have also started the reconstruction and reinforcement mode early, with the Houston Rockets becoming a hot topic; especially after the two former Eastern Conference champions Bucks and Celtics were eliminated one after another, rumors about Antetokounmpo and Brown's deal with the Rockets have been heard. As one of the teams with the most young potential players and draft picks in the league, the Rockets naturally hold a large number of high-quality trading chips. This season, they advanced to the playoffs second in the Western Conference and were unfortunately eliminated with the Warriors in seven games, which has proved the team's strength and huge potential. But the lack of All-Stars or even superstars in the team is also a well-known disadvantage. The introduction of All-Stars, which is in combat, has become the most important task for Houston management this summer.

Antetokounmpo's style of play is actually not suitable for the Rockets. Now the Rockets are the team with the worst outside shooting ability in the league. Although Antetokounmpo's shooting has improved in recent years, it still cannot reach the average level of league players. Moreover, his style of play is more focused on the penalty area, losing the restraint of the outside line, and overlapping with Shin Kyung in the inside line, the space on the court will become very narrow, and it is extremely easy to be targeted in the playoffs.

Jaylen Brown's strength as the league's top 3D point guard is naturally unquestionable, but his performance in this year's series was not optimistic. His average data this season has declined to varying degrees, and his three-point shooting percentage from the outside has dropped to a career low of 32%. If multiple young main players and draft picks are needed to trade, the Rockets may not be able to become a championship-level team. After all, Brown still cannot reach the peak Harden's state and unsolvable personal ability.

In contrast, Durant at the end of his career may be the Rockets' first choice. His offensive firepower is covered without any blind spots on the court, and he averages 26.6 points, 6 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.2 blocks per game. His three shooting percentage is close to the 180 club, and he is even more ruthless at critical moments. KD's powerful shooting ability perfectly makes up for the Rockets' weakest link, and is trapped in the opponent's joint defense and positional battle. Durant also has the ability to solve the problem and helps the team open up the situation.

It is worth mentioning that Durant's contract is only the last year. If his joining cannot help the Rockets enter the Western Conference Finals or even the finals, then the team will still have flexible operating space for adjustments next year, which can be said to be a double insurance.

As for Van Vleet, objectively speaking, there is no problem with this former champion point guard being the starting lineup in this team. His operational control ability is still very outstanding, and he can occasionally become a surprise on the offensive end. With Durant, he only needs to do a good job in offensive organization. If the Rockets refuse to execute his maximum-paid team option and leave VanVleet with a lower contract, it may be a good thing.