The only huge story for the Rockets this summer was the blockbuster trade that sent Chris Paul to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Russell Westbrook. The move didn’t just shake up the Rockets, but it has become one of the moves that has helped to completely shake up the entire future of the NBA.
The Los Angeles Lakers got better by adding Anthony Davis while the Clippers got better with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George — the latter of whom helped cleared the way for the Westbrook trade. Utah got better, the Warriors are different, but will still be competitive.
But the Rockets have to be feeling good about acquiring a guy who just averaged a triple-double for the third consecutive season. Rockets general manager Daryl Morey talked about how the trade went down and Harden’s reaction to the move on the Dan Patrick Show.
Daryl Morey: The Paul George situation obviously opened the window, and I did not anticipate him being available until that happened.
First, [I] asked for the direction of the [Thunder], and after that we discussed ‘maybe they’re looking at the possibility of moving some of their other key players. Spoke with ownership, with coach D’Antoni, with James Harden, and acquiring Westbrook at that point was something that we were interested in. And then it’s a matter of just working out the details of how to do it.”
Dan Patrick: What was Harden’s reaction when you first broached the topic.
Daryl Morey: Very enthusiastic, because he knows he plays well together with [Westbrook], because they’ve done it. Both on OKC and USA basketball, and growing up. So he was enthusiastic.
Harden and Westbrook have had a relationship since they were children and have played together both in Oklahoma City and on the USA men’s basketball team for international competitions. Hopefully that synergy can translate on court now that they’re in the primes of their careers and boost them to levels they haven’t seen since the last time they played together.
