Houston Rockets: Navigating through a potential James Harden, Russell Westbrook problem

The Houston Rockets may have a big problem

As the saga continues in Houston, multiple reports have leaked this week that not only does Russell Westbrook want out of town (subscription required), but there also remains some level of uncertainty regarding James Harden as well.

"As the Houston Rockets navigate an offseason of major change, a new challenge is emerging for the franchise — the uncertainty of former MVP guards James Harden and Russell Westbrook on their futures with the team, sources told ESPN."

With all of this drama and speculation arising less than a week before the 2020 NBA Draft, the Houston Rockets now have a huge situation on their hands that they won’t have a great amount of time to deal with as they usually would during the offseason.

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The 2020-21 NBA season will begin on December 22 after the league and the players association came to an agreement on an amended Collective Bargaining Agreement earlier this week.

So how does the announcement of this amended CBA impact the Rockets more than some other teams, you may ask?

The draft is scheduled for November 18, with the free agency period now set to begin just two days later, on November 20, then teams can “technically” begin signing free agents to contracts on November 22. Training camps will begin on December 1, not even two full weeks after the draft.

For these reasons and more, Mr. Fertitta and the Rockets are now on the clock and will need to figure something out quickly, unless they fancy going into the new NBA season with possibly two disgruntled stars, along with a first-time head coach and first-time general manager as well.

Westbrook’s contract would be tough to move in a normal offseason, as he is still owed over $132 million for the next three years, with that third year being a player option at $47 million.

Who passes up that kind of dough, right?

Not sure if there are too many teams in the market for a 32-year-old guard who is an inconsistent shooter, and has also shown some stubborn tendencies at times on the court, no matter who he’s had on his team.

With Harden, it is the opposite as there would probably be many teams that line up to make an offer for the bearded former MVP and three-time scoring champ. But for the Rockets, this move would be even tougher for the fact that they probably won’t receive anywhere near equal compensation for Harden if they are to send him packing. This scenario truly puts Houston in a tough spot if Harden is convinced that his time in clutch city has come to an end.

This story just gets more interesting by the day and should continue to play out over the next week or two right up to the start of training camp.