NBA
The Rockets Are Going to Lose James Harden and Russell Westbrook Over a Foolish Mistake
Stephen Sheehan began his sportswriting career as a high school student covering sports for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel through a student outreach program. He wrote for Bleacher Report and Fan Rag Sports and worked full-time for Sportscasting in 2020 and 2021. Stephen specializes in covering the NFL, particularly the New England Patriots. Stephen is inspired by the stories sports can tell, from money to tragedies to breaking news; there are so many different ways to cover the industry. He monitors Twitter and various websites every day to find stories to tell in unique ways. Stephen was a 2008 Culpepper Journalism Foundation Fellowship winner, received a bachelor's degree in journalism in 2013 and a master's in sports management in 2015 from the University of Florida, and is an active rugby player and former rugby and football coach.
Get to know Stephen Sheehan betterPublished01 Dec 2020
The Houston Rockets may have James Harden and Russell Westbrook on their roster at the moment, but the two NBA superstars could soon be playing elsewhere. And if the franchise loses both perennial All-Stars, it will be because of one foolish mistake.
And ultimately, the Rockets have nobody to blame but themselves.
James Harden and Russell Westbrook want out of Houston
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On paper, it looked like the Rockets made a home-run move by pairing Russell Westbrook with James Harden. After all, Westbrook averaged a triple-double in each of his final three seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Meanwhile, Harden led the NBA in scoring in back-to-back campaigns before his former Thunder teammate came on board.
In their first (and likely only) season together, the two guards put up monster numbers. Harden led the league in scoring at 34.3 points per game. Westbrook averaged 27.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 7.0 assists in 57 games.
However, Houston once again fell well short in its NBA title quest. The Rockets barely beat the Thunder in the first round before falling to the LA Lakers in five games.
Since then, things have only gotten worse in Houston. Both Harden and Westbrook have made it clear that they want to play elsewhere. Still, the Rockets have yet to trade either highly-paid star.
The Rockets are going to lose their two biggest stars over a foolish mistake
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If James Harden and Russell Westbrook stick to their guns, the Rockets will have no choice but to trade both of them. But the situation could have been avoided entirely if Houston didn’t make a foolish mistake.
After Mike D’Antoni elected not to renew his contract with the team, new general manager Rafael Stone and owner Tilman Fertitta hired Stephen Silas as the 14th head coach in franchise history. The move came as somewhat of a surprise considering he has never held that position elsewhere. And as it turns out, hiring Silas could be the reason the Rockets will end up losing their two biggest stars.
According to Joe Vardon of The Athletic, Fertitta wanted to bring on Jeff Van Gundy to coach the team. However, Harden and Westbrook had a different candidate in mind. The dynamic guards reportedly wanted the Rockets to hire Tyronn Lue, who brings a wealth of experience and a championship pedigree to the table.
Instead of listening to what his two stars wanted, Fertitta tried to compromise by hiring Silas. That plan has obviously backfired.
In a league driven by stars, the Rockets’ decision to pass over Lue in favor of Silas is a massive mistake. Because as we’ve seen with Kawhi Leonard and Anthony Davis, true superstars control their own fate. And by ignoring Harden and Westbrook’s wishes, the Rockets look like a franchise with a murky future.
What does the future hold for Harden and Westbrook?
RELATED: Russell Westbrook Has a $132 Million Barrier Blocking His Exit From Houston
With two years and roughly $91 million remaining on his contract, James Harden certainly isn’t cheap. Neither is Russell Westbrook, who has three years and about $132 million remaining on his long-term deal.
For teams interested in acquiring either star, it will be interesting to see how they approach a potential deal.
In Harden’s case, he has made it known that he would like to team up again with Kevin Durant. But will the Brooklyn Nets have to move Kyrie Irving in order for that to happen? It seems unlikely that Harden and Irving would fit well together in the backcourt since they are both ball-dominant guards.
When it comes to Westbrook, his expensive contract could be a stumbling block for many NBA teams. Will a franchise be willing to take on $132 million for a 32-year-old point guard who never won a title being “the guy” in OKC? At this point, it’s fair to wonder whether he’s even worth building around anymore.
But will Houston give in and get rid of Harden and/or Westbrook?
The Rockets already made a foolish mistake by ignoring their two biggest stars when it came time to hire a new head coach. Let’s see if they ignore their trade requests, too.
All contract data courtesy of Spotrac. All statistics courtesy of Basketball-Reference.
