Improve the strength of the lineup! The Rockets and Suns involved in 5-for-1 trades, and the 22-year-old star became a bargaining chip

The Houston Rockets lost to the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the 2025 playoffs. Jaylen Green's performance became the focus of controversy. He averaged only 13.2 points per game in the first round of the series, with a shooting percentage of 37.2% (21 points in the regular season, with a shooting percentage of 43.9%), especially in the seventh game, he scored 8 points on only 3 of 8 shots, and made many low-level mistakes. There was an obvious "god-ghost switching" phenomenon on the offensive end. Compared with the lineup Green's performance was not very ideal for other stars. In addition, Jaylen Green's rookie contract is about to end, followed by a three-year, $100 million contract. Green and Shin Kyung's contract will occupy nearly $70 million in salary space after 2025. In addition to the renewal needs of rookies such as Amen Thompson and Tari Ethan, the Rockets need to weigh the trade-offs between retaining core and flexibility. In this case, Green may abandon the Rockets in the offseason.

If Green leaves the team, it will only become a bargaining chip for the team to strengthen the Rockets with the current lineup. For this reason, Bailey Bassett, the author of the US media ClutchPoints, suggested that the Houston Rockets send Jaylen Green to the Suns during the offseason, bet on Kevin Durant, and give a potential offer. Let's take a look at the specific situation:

Rockets get: Kevin Durant; Suns get: Jaylen Green, Reed Shepard, Jocklandare, 2025 first-round draft pick (Suns), 2027 first-round draft pick (Suns)

For For the Rockets, the team returned to the playoffs after many years, but due to the problems exposed by themselves, it is impossible to go further in the playoffs. The offseason must strengthen the lineup, and next season, they will definitely show the teams with stronger strength. The chips given out in this deal are also full of sincerity. So what about the players they get? As a top scorer in the league, Durant can average 26.6 points, 6 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 0.81 steals and 1.24 blocks per game. He still has the ability to solve the problem at critical moments and rich playoff experience. The Rockets entered the playoffs as the second in the Western Conference this season, but was eliminated in the first round due to lack of star stability. Durant's joining can make up for this shortcoming, especially in key ball handling and tactical diversity, directly increasing the team's upper limit. Its experience and scoring ability can make up for the shortcomings of young teams, and can also attract more veterans to join the basic salary, forming a virtuous cycle of "old leading the new". If this deal can be reached, the Rockets are undoubtedly a favorite to compete for the championship.

For the Suns, the team performed poorly this season, and the team needs to make changes in the offseason. It is also a helpless move to send Durant. So what if you get the players? First of all, Jaylen Green's physical talent, top point guard, explodes in speed, surpasses the top, and is good at conversion. As a young player, he has good potential. He averaged 21 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game. Shebbode is also a good potential rookie. He averaged 11.4 minutes per game and scored 4 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists. As for Landal, he also has good combat power and can improve the depth of the bench. In addition, he also got two very valuable first-round picks, which made the Suns unable to refuse at all.

Overall, this deal is very good for both teams. If it can be finally reached, please feel free to discuss in the comment section!