Houston Rockets: A championship window has closed for this core

At the hands of the Golden State Warriors, the championship window has closed for this current core for the Houston Rockets

Heading into Game 6 at home, the Houston Rockets had a great opportunity on its hands. The Rockets not only had a home game to force a Game 7, but they were also just two wins away from dethroning the Golden State Warriors who were going to be without Kevin Durant for the remainder of the series.

But almost as quickly as Rockets fans were able to get excited about the possibility of finally breaking through in the West – especially against the Warriors – it ended almost as fast. However, James Harden and the Rockets were not just eliminated by Golden State, but the collection of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green – Golden State’s original Big Three, which has successfully eliminated the Rockets from the playoffs in four of the last five seasons – synchronously shut the door on Houston’s championship window.

Or, at least, for this current core.

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And despite his historic offensive year during the regular season, Harden will be remembered for the missed opportunity during the postseason. In Game 7, specifically, Harden scored 35 points, grabbed eight boards and accounted for five assists. It still wasn’t enough to overcome 60 combined points from Curry and Thompson.

Which has been the story for these Rockets, even before Kevin Durant crashed the party. However, it was a poetic ending for Houston’s championship opportunity that they fell to the Warriors, once again, without Durant (who was out with an injury).

This time, though, there are no “what if” games to play. The Rockets were healthy, and the Warriors weren’t – and it still didn’t matter. Golden State, even not playing at their best, were still the better team.

You might say that I’m being a little over the top by saying Houston’s championship window is now closed. Let me paint you a picture before you stone me.

Before anything, here are the facts about the Rockets:

James Harden will be 30 years old by the time next season begins, and will still be in his “prime” for the foreseeable future.
Chris Paul is 34 years old and is coming off back-to-back seasons in which he has played less than 60 games.
Paul is also coming off one of his lowest statistical regular season performances of his career, and we’ve probably seen the best basketball that he has in him.
The supporting cast of PJ Tucker and Eric Gordon will be another year older next season, and Clint Capela is coming off a rough, to say the least, showing in the playoffs.

Now, let’s take a quick look at some of the facts in terms of outside factors:

Even if Kevin Durant leaves Golden State, the Warriors have made it clear that they’re still better than Houston.
The Los Angeles Lakers – sure, laugh all you want – and Los Angeles Clippers have the potential to get substantially better during the summer in free agency or via the trade market.
The Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers could also be in line for internal improvement.
Houston doesn’t have cap space and not many ways to add talent.

Short of acquiring a player like LeBron James – which is an entirely different possibility for another day – the Rockets don’t really have a route for major improvement, the type that it would take to break through in the Western Conference.

As the Rockets head into the offseason, one thing is clear: the current core of Harden, Paul and (insert any third player here, potentially Capela) is not one that will carry this team to win an NBA Finals.

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A man as smart – and analytical – as Daryl Morey has to know this. What he does with this potential realization and information could make for an interesting summer for Houston. The Rockets need to pivot; which way will they?

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