NBA Trade Proposal: Rockets give up young sharpshooter to pair $204 million scoring guard with Kevin Durant in blockbuster deal

The Houston Rockets are eager to contend for the NBA championship with Kevin Durant this season. It's one of the biggest reasons they traded for Durant from the Phoenix Suns this summer. Unfortunately for the Texas-based team, they suffered a setback after Fred VanVleet sustained an ACL tear before training camp started.

Although Houston is still a potential candidate to contend for a championship, not having a point guard is a significant problem. VanVleet was expected to be the floor general in Durant's first season with the team. But since getting injured, the Rockets have been settling for having Amen Thompson as the starting lead guard.

Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley shared some of his trade ideas that could help Houston. Buckley's proposal involves trading away Reed Sheppard, the No. 3 pick of the 2024 draft. Also, Tari Eason, Fred VanVleet, Clint Capela, a 2027 first-round pick (via PHO) and a 2029 first-round pick (most favorable of HOU, DAL and PHO) are part of the package.

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In return, the NBA insider believes the team can get Tyrese Maxey and Eric Gordon from the Philadelphia 76ers.

"While he'd awfully hard to pry out of Philadelphia, he'd be all-caps GREAT if the asset-rich Rockets could pull it off. He's a star in his own right, but the fact he can play on or off the ball means he's built to shine bright alongside other stars, like Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun," Buckley wrote. "If the Sixers decide they can't make this work—or, at the very least, aren't contenders this season—then they might pounce on a couple of building blocks in Sheppard and Eason, plus the juicy, unprotected firsts they'd be getting here," he added.

Maxey is under a five-year, $204 million deal and could be part of the Rockets for quite some time. That is, if Houston follows Buckley's suggestion.

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Evan Turner has an issue with Amen Thompson's ballhandling for the Rockets

One of the main concerns for any team trying to contend for the championship is having a decent ball handler. With VanVleet's injury, the Rockets have given that assignment to Amen Thompson.

Fans saw what that looks like during the team's preseason game against the Atlanta Hawks. Former NBA player Evan Turner revealed that he has some issues with Thompson's ballhandling.

“The only reason why I’m not a big fan of Houston is that I have to see more of Amen’s ball handling,” Turner explained (2:12). “They don’t have many ball handlers. They don’t like a lot of veteran playmaking.

Without an elite ballhandler, Turner doesn't think the Rockets have what it takes to contend for the championship. He also said that Thompson and Sheppart are going to have to learn how to be reliable ball handlers on the fly.

Edited by Reign Amurao