The Houston Rockets lost a lot of depth when they went all-in for Chris Bosh and lost in the gamble when he decided to sign with the Miami Heat this summer in the 2014 NBA free agency. After dealing with Jeremy Lin to the Los Angeles Lakers to make room for a max contract for Bosh, the Rockets are now quite thin in the point guard position, but not for long. Houston is now looking at adding free agent Ramon Sessions who is also reportedly interested in signing with the team, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders.
Citing sources, Kennedy wrote for the sports blog, "The Houston Rockets are trying to acquire free agent Ramon Sessions in a sign-and-trade with the Milwaukee Bucks, per league sources. Sources say there is mutual interest between Ramon Sessions and the Rockets. There have been sign-and-trade talks, but nothing is imminent.
Without Lin, the Rockets only have Isaiah Canaan and Ishmael Smith, practically unknowns in the NBA, in their roster to back up Patrick Beverly in the coming season. Acquiring Sessions reportedly makes sense as he would bring reliable scoring off the bench and become a solid back up to Patrick Beverly, according to Yoni Pollak of House Houston.
There are some minor obstacles, though, which when added up can prove problematic for the Rockets in their quest to acquire Sessions. Dan Feldman of ProBasketballTalk said in his piece, "Houston is also over the regular-season roster limit of 15. Even if they waive the guaranteed contracts of Alonzo Gee, Scotty Hopson and Josh Powell and the partially guaranteed contract of Robert Covington, the Rockets would have 15 players before Sessions."
Feldman believed that the Rockets' most realistic option is a sign-and-trade deal with the Milwaukee Bucks for Sessions. However, the Bucks already have 15 guaranteed contracts in their books, not to mention the low-risk, high-reward Kendall Marshall and the expendable Chris Wright, who both are in unguaranteed contracts. The Bucks, therefore, might not be able to accept any trade package offered by Houston for Sessions unless it involves assets that make sense to them, both in the short and long run. The Rockets should therefore make an interesting package for the Bucks if they want a trade for Sessions to happen.
The Rockets are in dire need of a back-up point guard, as the Bucks would love to get something in return for Sessions, whose market value has already dried up. Before the trade deadline kicks in, both teams might need to explore every angle to make the rumored trade a reality.
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