With the recent report from NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski announcing Ime Udoka as
the new head coach for the young and promising Houston Rockets, it has massive long term implications for the Brooklyn Nets.
Ignoring the fact that Ime Udoka was a former assistant on the 2020-21 Nets coaching staff, as well as the fact that Nets GM Sean Marks had two different opportunities to select him as head coach, instead opting for disgraced former Nets head coach Steve Nash, and later on the current head coach, Jacque Vaughn.
This hiring will have serious implications for the Nets given the fact that they have two unprotected pick swaps with the Rockets due to the James Harden trade that took place in January of 2021, one in 2025 and the other in 2027.
While the 2022-23 Houston Rockets posted a measly 22-60 record, tied for the 2nd worst team record in the NBA, the Rockets have an immense amount of talent that could easily be weaponized by an intelligent basketball mind.
Ime Udoka was able to take the broken Boston Celtics and turn them back into a championship contender by instilling strong defensive fundamentals, as well as more ball movement on offense. After having the Celtics bought into his coaching philosophy, they went 17-5 post the 2022 All-Star break and proceeded to the NBA Finals.
In addition to the Ime Udoka hiring, because the Rockets posted such an awful record,
they now have a 14% chance of receiving the #1 pick in the 2023 draft, meaning they could acquire a generational prospect, 7"5 Victor Wembanyama.
If the lottery favors the Rockets and they manage to draft Wembanyama, in addition to their young promising core of Jalen Green, Kevin Porter Jr, Alperen Sengun, and Jabari Smith, it will only be a matter of time before the Rockets turn into a serious playoff team.
To make matters worse for the Nets, there have been legitimate rumors that Sixers Point
Guard James Harden could return to Houston in the offseason if things do not go well with the Sixers during the 2023 playoffs, according to a report from ESPN Adrian Wojnarowski.
While James Harden is not the MVP-caliber player he was during his first tenure in
Houston, Harden in the 2022-23 season averaged 21 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 10.7 assists on 44/39/87 splits, leading the NBA in assists per game.
Harden can absolutely still contribute to winning basketball, and Houston has the cap space to sign James Harden as well as several other role players, in addition to their current young core.
If everything goes right for the Rockets, they can very well turn into a playoff team by 2024 or 2025 at the latest. With the Brooklyn Nets committing their 2025 and 2027 1st-rounders in unprotected pick swaps, if the Nets are a lottery team in those years, Brooklyn could very well be handing the Rockets another Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown .
I'm happy for Udoka and the Rockets. As long as the Nets have this incompetent coaching and management staff things like this will continue to happen