If the Houston Rockets are unable to pry James Harden away from the Philadelphia Sixers in the upcoming NBA offseason, the team will reportedly look to try their hand at securing the services of Kyrie Irving.
Although the team are favourites to bring Harden back to Houston, the organisation is prepared to look for other veteran guard options to help lead their young roster.
The Rockets have already made it public that they would like Harden to return to Houston, pairing him with a young trio core of Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, and Jabari Smith Jr. While the team is considered frontrunners to land Harden, NBA insiders are reporting that if Harden decides to stay in Philadelphia, the Houston organisation is prepared to pursue Irving as a secondary option.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Rockets will take a look at Irving if they're unable to secure a free agency move for Harden. He also noted that the Dallas Mavericks are the only team credited with a concrete interest in Irving so far.
While the Rockets have $59million in cap space to sign a big-time free agent next season, the team's recent struggles resulted in a 22-60 record -- making them the third worse team in the NBA last year and a hard sell for potential free agents. Since Harden left the team in the middle of the 2020-21 season, the Houston franchise has won just 42 out of 122 NBA games.
During the start of the NBA playoffs, Irving was spotted in attendance at multiple Los Angeles Lakers games, further fueling the speculation that the all-star guard is keen to join Anthony Davis and reunite with LeBron James -- recreating the tandem that defeated the Golden State Warriors 4-2 in the 2016 NBA Finals. The Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Clippers have also been projected as teams to sign Irving.
Irving signed a four-year / $136.5m contract with the Brooklyn Nets in 2019, including $136.5m in guaranteed money. He was then traded to the Mavericks for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a 2029 first-round pick and two second-round picks in 2027 and 2029.
Under the leadership of Mav's star Luka Donic, the organization was the fifth seed in the Western Conference before the trade for Irving. After the transaction, the team suffered a massive losing streak, falling out of Playoff contention by dropping to the 11th seed-- further questioning if the two stars could play alongside each other or if the duo is enough to lead Dallas to an NBA title.
While Irving is still one of the best point guards in the NBA, a slew of off-the-court controversies resulted in the star losing his signature sneaker deal with Nike, as well as $1.3m of his $36.5m salary during a controversial five-game suspension during the 2022 NBA season.
Since then, he's signed a new footwear deal with Chinese sports equipment company Anta, which currently has contracts with Klay Thompson, Alex Caruso, and Kevon Looney.
If things don't pan out in LA, it was reported that Irving has also reached out to LeBron to lure the four-time NBA champion and all-time scoring leader to join him and Luka in Dallas.
