3 reasons the Houston Rockets are legitimate title contenders

3. Roster Construction

Rockets general manager Daryl Morey shook up the roster at the trade deadline by swapping out Clint Capela for Robert Covington. Morey also created roster spots for the signings of DeMarre Carroll and Jeff Green, which only gave the Rockets more depth. Carroll and Green were two interesting additions considering Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni’s tendency to play the same seven or eight guys every year.

If you take a closer look at the roster, the following players will receive viable minutes: Russell Westbrook, James Harden, P.J. Tucker, Robert Covington, Eric Gordon, Danuel House, Austin Rivers, Jeff Green, DeMarre Carroll, Ben McLemore, and Thabo Sefolosha. It appears D’Antoni now has the pieces in place to open up the rotation, which will help keep his core guys fresh for a deep playoff run.

All in all, the Rockets were able to acquire three players in Carroll, Green, and Covington who have already made a tremendous impact on the team’s performance of late. The re-tooling of the roster has given them all the necessary pieces to make a deep run in the playoffs.

This should be frightening for the rest of the league, because the Rockets already had multiple superstars who are hungry and determined to bring a title to Clutch City, and we know Westbrook has an intensity like none other.

With a viable supporting cast to go along with two superstars, it will be difficult to stop this team.

Next: No. 2