The Southwest Division is already stirring, and a lot of the noise centers on names that could reshape the next few months: Kyrie Irving, Alperen Sengun, Daniel Gafford, and even a roster battle in Memphis.
Irving is the biggest question mark. Marc Stein reported that the Mavericks have turned away trade interest in the nine-time All-Star all offseason, but rival teams are still watching closely as Feb. 11 approaches.
The thinking around the league is simple enough: Dallas may hold that line for now, but that could change once the season starts and the trade deadline gets closer. Stein noted the age gap at the top of the roster - Irving is 34, while Mavericks star forward Cooper Flagg is 19 - and that alone has kept the conversation alive.
If Dallas ever does decide to make Irving available, Houston has already surfaced as a natural landing spot. USA Today’s Wajih AlBaroudi pointed to the Rockets as a potential fit, saying Irving could give them the scoring they’ve lacked in the backcourt.
He wrote, “Fred VanVleet’s torn ACL just before the 2025-26 season derailed what could’ve been a special season for the Rockets, who have become a defensive juggernaut under Ime Udoka. Irving would provide the Rockets some much-needed scoring punch, plus Houston has an array of defenders to cover up Irving’s deficiencies on that end.”
A reunion with Kevin Durant would make that idea even louder, since Irving and Durant were teammates with the Brooklyn Nets. They never made a deep playoff run together there, though for now the whole idea remains just that - an idea.
Houston’s bigger internal storyline may be who it is and isn’t willing to move. ESPN’s Tim MacMahon said on the Hoop Collective podcast that Amen Thompson is viewed inside the organization as its most valuable player, and maybe the one true untouchable on the roster.
MacMahon said, “If there’s one untradeable player on the roster, it is him. According to their metrics, they think he’s one of the top 10 most valuable players in the league.
I’m just telling you how they view him. So, for them to get a player they value that much on this deal is great value for them.
For Amen Thompson: $208 million, fully guaranteed, and there are no options either way… he’s set for life. He wants to be in Houston, and he’s going to be in Houston.”
The Rockets backed that up by signing Thompson to a five-year, $208 million extension. That makes their long-term pecking order pretty clear, with Thompson looking like a cornerstone no matter how much the rest of the roster changes.
Alperen Sengun, though, is not sitting in quite the same spot. Sportsnaut’s Jason Burgos raised the possibility that Sengun could become a trade name if Houston doesn’t look like a real contender early on.
He pointed out that if Durant is hard to move and Thompson is off the table, Sengun could be the most realistic asset the Rockets would consider. Burgos also noted that some questions have followed Sengun after his playoff performance, even though he played better before the team was eliminated in the spring.
“If the Rockets play well with a returning Fred VanVleet, the trade speculation will disappear. However, if they are a middle-of-the-road team in the West, the Sengun trade speculation will intensify.
And for a two-time All-Star in his early 20s, Houston could get at least two future first-round picks in a potential trade. So the front office must take calls if they get them.”
That pressure exists because Houston was knocked out in the first round of the playoffs last year after adding Durant. If the team starts the season well, the noise around Sengun should quiet down quickly. If it gets stuck in the middle of the Western Conference, the talk only gets louder.
Dallas has another possible trade chip besides Irving. Daniel Gafford looks more movable if the Mavericks decide to keep reshaping the roster.
Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney called Gafford the most likely candidate, with the team aiming to get younger. Deveney wrote, “Gafford will be 28 in October, and with the Mavs focused on getting younger, moving him along has been one of the team’s top options.
They’re hoping to get a first-round pick for Gafford, but that might be a big ask because of his contract.”
Evan Sidery also reported that Dallas is looking for a first-round pick in return. That price could decide whether anything actually happens. Gafford remains a dependable rim-running center, but his three-year deal at roughly $18 million per year could make some teams hesitate before giving up that kind of draft capital.
Memphis, meanwhile, has a different kind of problem: too many bodies and not enough spots. Jake Fischer initially flagged Walter Clayton Jr. as a player who could be waived, but Marc Stein later reported that Fischer now believes Clayton has a good chance to make the regular-season roster.
The math is still ugly. The Grizzlies have 19 players on non-guaranteed contracts competing for 15 roster spots, so four players have to be moved out. That can happen through a trade or by cutting or waiving players, and Memphis needs to settle it soon.
In Other News...
Fred VanVleet Update Gives Rockets Fans Real Reason For Optimism
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Rafael Stone also confirmed Amen Thompsons long-term future with the franchise after his rookie-scale extension was finalized, another sign the organization is locking in around its young core. Add in the arrival of veteran assistant Chip Engelland, whose reputation in player development and shooting work is well established, and the Rockets continue to look like a team trying to build both for now and for the next phase. The only real question left is how soon the roster can start feeling the full effects of all that planning. [Read more 🡒]
Ime Udoka Just Added A Coach Rockets Fans Should Love
Chip Engelland is officially on board in Houston, and his arrival gives Ime Udoka another veteran voice on the staff with a reputation that should play especially well with Rockets fans. Udoka pointed to their long relationship and Engellands shooting expertise when discussing the hire, a pairing that makes sense for a young roster that can always use cleaner spacing, better mechanics and more consistency from the perimeter.
Engelland did not come from a quiet offseason stop either, having been with the Oklahoma City Thunder during the playoffs before making the move to Houston. The next question is how quickly that teaching presence translates on the floor, especially with Engelland already around the team and getting to work in the practice environment where the Rockets will look to sharpen the details. [Read more 🡒]
Kevin Durant Debate Just Put Rockets Fans In An Uncomfortable Spot
Kevin Durants future has already become the kind of conversation that makes fan bases wince, and Houston is no exception. The veteran forward still has a player option for the 2027-2028 season, but the chatter around his trade value has shifted enough that some around the league are wondering how much teams would actually pay to get him now, especially after a strong recent season and reliable availability.
For Rockets fans, the uncomfortable part is not just the speculation, but the contrast it invites with what Phoenix got back when it dealt Durant. There are no recent signs Houston is looking to move him, and the team would obviously prefer to judge the situation by what he does on the floor rather than by outside noise. Still, once executives start talking about how a stars market could change, it becomes the kind of storyline that hangs around until someone decides to close the loop. [Read more 🡒]