Rafael Stone: “We like our current group”

Despite the Houston Rockets finding themselves in playoff contention and undergoing one of the most notable turnarounds from the previous season, it seems they are unlikely to alter their strategy regarding any in-season moves as the trade deadline approaches.

“We like our current group,” said Rafael Stone to Kelly Iko of The Athletic. “We like the way they are playing on the court, we like the way they’re interacting. We think there’s a lot of room for improvement just in the guys we have playing better and getting better. So by no means, this year at least, are we aggressively hunting a particular deal or series of deals.

“Having said that, it’s kind of my job to talk to everybody and to hear what other teams are trying to do and see if there are things that make sense for both parties. And we’ll make sure we make every phone call and run out every ground ball. At least right now, we need a better sense of exactly where our team is before we start thinking, ‘Oh, we need to add this.’ We’ll have a better sense, honestly, a game from now, right?

“Like every game gives us critical information. I think it’s too early to predict how active we will or will not be at the trade deadline or in the days in between. But we are not feeling any need to do something per se. We like where this group is and mostly we want there to be internal improvement.”