Colin Cowherd says weather makes Rockets a dream destination

FS1’s Colin Cowherd believes the weather has played a factor in the Houston Rockets being a top target for many players across the NBA.

Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey has consistently been one of the top executives in the league year in and year out. Morey has been able to bring in superstars such as James Harden, Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, and Russell Westbrook, all while staying under the luxury tax, which is no small feat.

Part of Morey’s sales pitch has included playing alongside James Harden, who has already made his mark as one of the best scorers in NBA history. Another factor that’s surely made the Rockets appealing is the fact that they’ve made the playoffs every year since acquiring Harden in 2012, which not many teams can say.

But FS1’s Colin Cowherd believes there’s another facet the Rockets have in their favor, as it pertains to reeling in marquee players. Cowherd had the below to say on The Herd with Colin Cowherd.

Cowherd believes weather makes Rockets a top destination.

“The NBA has always been a league where there are certain places that are free agent destinations. It’s a winter league. A lot of guys like playing in warm weather.

I think 74 degrees in December, January, February, March is a big reason for that. Houston, Charles Barkley went to Houston, Scottie Pippen.

In a winter league, 82 games, it’s nice to get off the plane at three in the morning and it’s like 58 degrees, not eight degrees.”

It’s worth noting that the superstars the Rockets have landed of late have all been acquired via trade, with the exception of Howard, although the Rockets have surely brought in valuable contributors via free agency, such as Eric Gordon, P.J. Tucker, and several others over the years.

The fact that Cowherd had to go back several decades to cite Scottie Pippen and Charles Barkley is further proof of this, and even they were both acquired via trade, although Pippen was brought in via sign-and-trade.

But Cowherd is right as it pertains to the Houston climate, as it’s quite common for the temperature to be in the 60s and 70s in the winter months, although the past several winters have been much cooler. He also listed the Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs as additional examples, which is consistent with the climate of the southern region.

But even without the warm weather, it’s safe to say the Houston Rockets would still consistently load up on talent, as Rockets GM Daryl Morey simply understands the art behind how to pull off trades involving marquee players. The warmer climate certainly helps though, and I’m sure Morey likes having that on his side also.