Houston Rockets could regret making rash draft day decision

The Houston Rockets are officially a win-now team.

It happened in a flash. It feels like yesterday that the Rockets were typically among the worst teams in the NBA. Even last year's incredible leap to .500 basketball is in the rearview.

The Rockets are a powerhouse.

This is a 52-win squad. Generally, 50 wins is a meaningful benchmark in the NBA. Only three teams won more games than the Rockets in 2024-25, and one of them is overwhelmingly likely to win this year's championship.

Next year, the goal will be to join the 60-win club. It will be a tall order, but it's the next step in Houston's evolution.

Do they need to cater every offseason decision towards meeting that goal?

Rockets named as draft day trade candidate

Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman is making that suggestion.

"With the Houston Rockets in win-now mode and their roster already loaded with young prospects who have struggled to find playing time, this is a team to watch on the trade market."

-Jonathan Wasserman, Bleacher Report

This isn't an attack on Wasserman. He's right - the Rockets are strong candidates to trade their upcoming lottery pick. It's rare for a contending team to land a lottery pick. The Rockets are already dealing with a roster crunch. Why add another young player who won't see the floor to the mix?

Well...

Rockets should consider using draft pick

The two prospects who have struggled to see the floor have been Reed Sheppard and Cam Whitmore. Sheppard is an undersized rookie. Whitmore has meaningful warts in his game that aren't tenable for a win-now squad.

It doesn't follow that any rookie will find themselves squeezed out of the rotation.

Wasserman has the Rockets taking Georgia's Asa Newell. He may struggle to find time as a rookie in Houston. Given the success the team has had with Steven Adams this year, they may not be looking for a backup 5.

What about Duke's Kon Knueppel? The Rockets could use an injection of shooting. Unlike Sheppard, Knueppel is 6'7". It's possible that he'd be able to help the Rockets in a limited role from day one.

Yet, the Rockets don't even need to draft on that basis. Wasserman's board has Kasparas Jakucionis available when the Rockets select. He's a 6'6" floor general with dynamic floor vision and outstanding craftiness. There are questions about his athleticism, but the Rockets know that limited athleticism won't always hold a prospect back:

That was roughly the same criticism pundits had of Alperen Sengun.

More broadly, the Rockets can draft the player they think has the highest upside and stash them on the bench. If Sheppard breaks out as a sophomore, nobody will care that his minutes were limited as a rookie.

The Rockets don't know who their franchise player is. Suppose they trade the rights to draft Jakucionis for a high-end role player, and Jakucionis is a star in three years? Suppose they trade the rights to draft Knueppel for a similar player, and in three years, Knueppel is a better player on a smaller contract?

The urge to trade this pick is understandable. If the trade is right, it will even be a defensible position. There is still plenty of reasons why simply using the pick is the right call.

Even for a win-now team like the Rockets.