Ranking 7 former Ime Udoka players the Rockets could trade for

The Houston Rockets had to move on from Stephen Silas. Rebuilding a roster and playing primarily young players is a recipe for a lottery record, but the Rockets won just 59 games in three entire seasons with Silas; that's six fewer than they won in the 2017-18 season alone. Silas wasn't able to bring accountability, toughness or a coherent plan on either side or the ball, and that is why he is gone.

Now Ime Udoka enters as the new coach for Space City. This time last year he was coaching a Boston Celtics team into the NBA Finals. His track record suggests he will bring what Silas lacked, instilling this team with culture and a plan to improve.

What's more, Idoka's travels around the league as an assistant coach and then as a head coach in Boston mean he has plenty of connections to players. As the Rockets look to use their assets and cap space to make a big move this summer and improve significantly next year, the team could lean on Udoka's connections to players to identify trade targets.

Here are seven such players, starting with a player who could help bring defense, toughness and veteran savvy to a roster that has been without all three for quite some time.

Former Udoka players No. 7: Kyle Anderson

From 2012 through 2019, Ime Udoka served as an assistant coach on the staff of Gregg Popovich in San Antonio, and while there he coached a young forward named Kyle Anderson. The 6'9" Anderson went on to grow into a strong defender, passer and gluy guy with the Memphis Grizzlies, a role he carried over to the Minnesota Timberwolves this past year.

Anderson also clashed with his teammates, specifically Rudy Gobert, and if the organization chooses Gobert it could lead to Anderson being available. The Rockets could add a combo forward who can rebound and defend at a high level, and his ball movement on offense would help glue together a roster of individual scorers. Making just $9.2 million next season, Anderson could be affordable on every level for Houston next year.

Former Udoka players No. 6: Tobias Harris

Just prior to taking the Celtics head coaching job, Udoka was a top assistant for Doc Rivers with the Philadelphia 76ers. While any relationship he built with Joel Embiid is pointless in a trade conversation as the MVP-favorite is staying put in Philly, there is another talented scorer on the Sixers that could be a trade candidate.

Harris has been a walking bucket since his second season in the NBA, seeing his scoring dip to 14.7 this season because of a reduced role, not poor efficiency. The 6'8" forward shot 50.1 percent from the field and 38.9 percent from deep, and served as the third option for a 76ers offense that ranked fourth in the league.

The difficulty with trading for Harris is not his production, nor his availability; an increasingly-expensive 76ers team may very well be willing to part with Harris to keep James Harden. The issue is his large salary, as Harris will make $39.3 million next season in the final year of a five-year, $180 million contract.

If they can sort the money out, Harris could be a great fit on the Rockets next season. He can shift some of the scoring burden off of Jalen Green, is versatile enough to fit alongside Jabari Smith Jr., Alperen Sengun or Tari Eason in the frontcourt, and is good enough as a passer, rebounder and defender not to get killed. He isn't a game-changer, but he is a really good player that may appreciate playing for coach Udoka again.

Former Udoka players No. 5: Dejounte Murray

Ime Udoka was on the Spurs' staff when they drafted Dejounte Murray, a top recruit who had an up-and-down season for the Washington Huskies as a freshman before entering the draft. Murray's All-Star blossoming came with Udoka gone, but there is still likely some sort of connection between the two.

If so, Murray represents the kind of player who should thrive alongside Jalen Green. He is an excellent defender with great length (even more so when he doesn't have a massive offensive load), he has improved his jumpshot (34.4 percent on a career-high 5.2 attempts from 3 this season) and is a connective passer, the kind of guard the Rockets haven't found to complement Green yet.

Murray arrived in Atlanta last offseason as the player who wa supposed to push them back into contention; instead they limped into the playoffs as the seventh seed (eighth-best record in the East). Murray and Trae Young were never a seamless fit on offense, and Murray's ball-hawking style on defense is great at sparking transition opportunities but didn't cover up for Young's complete lack of impact on that end.

If the Hawks decide to cut their losses this offseason, the Rockets should make a call. They can offer Atlanta multiple young players and picks, even providing salary relief for a player like John Collins. Murray and Udoka weren't together for each other's prime, but Udoka looks like a coach who would love to oversee the next chapter in Murray's career.

Former Udoka players No. 4: Marcus Smart

If there is one player on this list with the strongest connection to Ime Udoka, it would have to be Marcus Smart. Last year, with Udoka as his coach, Marcus Smart had the best offensive season of his career and won Defensive Player of the Year. Whatever the relationship between Smart and Udoka, it clearly worked for the hard-nosed point guard.

This season was a bit rockier for Smart; he still played well, but the Celtics also saw the impact of Derrick White as a player with most of Smart's defensive impact and more offensive versatility. With Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum heading towards massive paydays (more on that in a few slides) the Celtics may be open to a big offer from another team to reduce some costs and recoup some assets.

That's the opening Houston could leap through to add a difference-maker to their backcourt. Smart has grown up in the NBA as a do-it-all guard playing alongside other ball-dominant players, which would help him ease into a role alongside Jalen Green. Defensively, Smart's defense at the point-of-attack is legendary, and his strength and length allow him to switch onto larger players or cross-match to cover up for the weaker defenders in a lineup.

Smart has three more seasons remaining on his contract and will make $18.6 million next season (rising to $21.3 in 2025-26). The Rockets can easily afford that now, and Smart will still be in his early 30s by that final season. Udoka and Smart were tremendous together last season, and they could be again in Houston.

Former Udoka players No. 3: Jarrett Allen

For every player thus far we have tried to make the theory of the case for why they could be available. Jarrett Allen has become an All-Star player for the Cleveland Cavaliers after he was acquired from the Brooklyn Nets, where he and Ime Udoka were together for the start of the 2020-21 season.

Why would Cleveland trade him, then? The answer lies in the fit of Allen with Evan Mobley, the young phenom at power forward. The two have thrived together defensively, but the Cavs' offense has been strangled in their first playoff series together due to a lack of spacing. It's possible that at some point the Cavs decide they need to break up their two bigs in order to build a more versatile roster.

If they do, the Rockets should jump at the chance to add an impact two-way center in the middle. Aleperen Sengun has plenty of offensive upside, but his archetype is also unproven at the highest levels. If the Rockets are going to build a contender, they either need a rim protector at the 5 or they need Sengun to be an MVP candidate.

Allen represents a much more proven path to success. He is one of the league's best rim protectors, witht he foot speed to switch on the perimeter and guard in space. On offense he is an excellent finisher on the roll and has great touch. Adding Allen would catapult the Rockets' defense and help jumpstart their path towards the playoffs.

Former Udoka player No. 2: DeMar DeRozan

Every player we have mentioned thus far on this list has been a proven veteran who can step onto the team and help elevate the play of a team helmed by Jalen Green and whoever they draft this year. Now we pivot, as the final two players are on-ball stars who would slot Green and their top pick into the No. 2 and 3 positions.

DeMar DeRozan redefined his career with the San Antonio Spurs when Udoka was there, building out his playmaking game and sharpening his shot selection. Now in Chicago, DeRozan has been an All-Star level scoring wing and made an All-NBA team last year. He scored 24.5 points per game this season for the Bulls on 59.2 percent true-shooting.

Slotting Green in as the No. 2 option allows his shooting and cutting ot be weaponized, and he should have an easier time attacking mismatches after a defense shifts towards a driving DeMar DeRozan. Green can play a similar role to Zach LaVine alongside DeRozan, and DeRozan can provide some veteran mentorship to Green that seems to largely be lacking on the current Houston roster.

The Bulls are staring a rebuild in the face, and it's likely they ignore the smarter paths and simply try to compete with this group again next season. If they are open to a trade, however, Udoka and DeRozan could reunite on the Rockets and the Bulls could replenish their draft pick supply.

Former Udoka player No. 1: Jaylen Brown

We finally land on the one star in his prime on this list, the kind of player who can completely change a franchise's future. Jaylen Brown received All-NBA votes last season playing under Ime Udoka in Boston, and was arguably the team's best player in the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors.

Teams don't usually trade that level of player, especially not when they are a contender and plan to stay one. Yet Brown could very well want his own team and communicate that to the Celtics. Add in the financial stress on the Celtics' team-building due to the new CBA, and the prospect of paying Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown both supermax contracts could force their hand.

The Rockets likely don't have the right pieces to trade for Brown directly, but let's assume for a moment they work out a three-team trade with a team like the Chicago Bulls. Brown would immediately be the best offensive player on the Rockets, an on-ball star with the size to take on the best defenders thrown his way. Brown has room to grow as a playmaker, but at age 26 he still has room to develop.

A star two-way wing is the best building block you can have in the NBA, and everything else fits around it. Brown's scoring makes it easier for Jalen Green to thrive; his defense paired with Jabari Smith Jr. would be a formidable front line for opponents to try and pierce. He can play the 2 or he can play the 4 in smaller lineups, unlocking plenty of lineup flexibility.

Ime Udoka would love to have Jaylen Brown back at his disposal. He leads the list of players that Udoka used to coach that the Houston Rockets could trade for this offseason or beyond. Will any of them make their way to H-Town?