The Houston Rockets were not committed going completely small in the 2020 NBA trade dealine, according to Tim MacMahon’s latest report.
Following the Clint Capela trade, which brought Robert Covington in Houston, the Rockets tried to trade for the Oklahoma City Thunder’s back-up center Nerlens Noel.
Here is how MacMahon described the situation on Zach Lowe’s podcast as transcribed by USA Today Sports:
“They obviously went all in on micro-ball, but they thought at the time that they could find a bargain big man. If Clint Capela was a full-service Marriott, they thought they could find a Courtyard by Marriott type of big man to at least be in the rotation.
For example, they had discussions before the trade deadline and were optimistic and thought that they could get a deal done to bring in Nerlens Noel.”
Noel averaged 7.4 points (68.4% FG), 4.9 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 18.5 minutes per game this season and is set to become a free agent this offseason.
Here you can listen the full conversation between the two reporters on Daryl Morey’s tenure and the future of the franchise.
