However, it really started a few months before, at the NBA trade deadline when then-general manager/senior adviser Ed Stefanski and his staff traded Andre Drummond to Cleveland essentially for cap space - which ended up being used by Weaver to sign Jerami Grant the upcoming summer. Honestly, the writing was on the wall midway through the 2020 season, with the veteran-led team struggling with health and wins.Ī lot of outsiders believe the Pistons jump-started their rebuild when they hired current general manager Troy Weaver in June of 2020. The Rockets’ path was a very dramatic realization. I’d like to say Detroit’s path was a bit less dramatic, but what was the first real sign that the Pistons were going to embrace a rebuild?Įdwards: Yeah, that’s a great point. The Rockets essentially had no choice and no heads-up to rebuild.
#HOUSTON ROCKETS ROSTER 2008 SERIES#
It ended in a series of unfortunate events that turned the organization upside down. The Rockets were forced into this rebuild off the back of a number of emotional losses trying to make a deep postseason run. The stress of the Orlando bubble and their embarrassing second-round exit forced everyone to abandon ship, leaving Harden alone to eventually force his own way out the following season. Paul was swapped out for Russell Westbrook to no avail. Iko: Houston had built successful, competitive rosters around James Harden for years and finally broke through during the 2017-18 season, adding Chris Paul to the mix and pushing the Rockets to a franchise-best 65 wins.īut you know the story by now: Paul’s hamstring failed him at the worst possible time, the Rockets lost Game 7 in the Western Conference finals and never got past the pesky Golden State Warriors. The Pistons then had to take a tough road to get to this moment today, a checkpoint that has brought about the most optimism since just before Chauncey Billups was traded for Allen Iverson. Physically, that playoff campaign took the last bit out of him as an elite player in this league. In Detroit, it was because Blake Griffin was unable to return to his All-NBA form from the 2018-19 season. Lastly - and I think this will be the heart of our discussion going forward - is the contrast by which each of these franchises was forced to rebuild. Houston is the Detroit of the Western Conference, and vice versa. Secondly, as you mentioned, these two franchises started rebuilds around the same time, although the Pistons’ was about a year earlier. Detroit has been lost in the sauce on a national level because it hasn’t had a playoff victory since 2008, while the Rockets’ issue over the years is due to falling short at the sport’s highest level. The Rockets are one of 11 teams with at least two championships. The Pistons are one of eight teams in NBA history with at least three NBA championships. For starters, both are, to an extent, forgotten legacy acts. It’s their differences that make them similar.Įdwards: Comparing these two franchises is fascinating for several reasons. It was the fact that although both franchises took different routes to get to this point, they were starting their rebuilds at the same time. 2 pick wasn’t really the biggest takeaway, however. Iko: This time last year, the Rockets and Pistons were doing their homework on a handful of incoming NBA players projected to go at the top of the draft. (Editor’s note: Some parts have been edited for clarity and brevity.)
The Athletic’s Rockets beat writer Kelly Iko and Pistons beat writer James Edwards III got together to discuss the multifaceted rebuild that affects both franchises. Their differences lie in individual processes, roster makeup, ability to wheel and deal and, of course, assets. While the two teams took different paths to arrive here, they share a common future goal: winning. Two franchises, the Houston Rockets and the Detroit Pistons, will look for continued progress a year after selecting Jalen Green and Cade Cunningham, respectively. In two weeks, the 2022 NBA Draft will take place, once again giving bad teams a chance to turn their misfortunes into success.
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