3 trades Jerry Krause made with the Houston Rockets

2. Rockets send Bryce Drew to Bulls for two 2nd-round picks

Long before Bryce Drew became a college head coach, he was a first round pick by the Rockets in the 1998 NBA Draft. The Rockets selected Drew with the 16th pick of the draft, which was great value for the three-time Mid-Continent Conference tournament MVP.

Drew exhibited stellar 3-point shooting while at Valparaiso University, as he was consistently one of the best snipers in the MCC during each of his four years with the Crusaders. This made him a natural fit in Rudy Tomjanovich‘s offense, as he was one of the first coaches to utilize the 3-point heavy offense.

Drew didn’t necessarily shoot well from long-range during his rookie season, as he made 32.7 percent of his treys, which was sixth-best on the team. Drew played 13 minutes per game during that season, but received an uptick in minutes during his second season in Houston, and played much better.

During year two in Houston, Drew played 18 minutes per game and averaged 5.8 points on 36.2 percent from long-range, while also adding 2.3 assists. Drew had the fourth-best 3-point percentage on the Rockets that season, although the Rockets had a disappointing season, as they missed the playoffs.

The Rockets went 34-48 and dealt Drew to the Bulls at the end of that season, in exchange for the Bulls’ second-round picks in the 2005 and 2006 NBA Draft. Drew was on an expiring contract during his season with the Bulls, and they ultimately decided not to bring him back after the 2000-01 season was up.

Both of the picks the Rockets landed from Krause were included in a later deal the Rockets made with the Utah Jazz for John Amaechi, who ultimately never played for the Rockets. Amaechi and Moochie Norris were later traded to the New York Knicks for Clarence Weatherspoon during the 2003-04 season.

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