Rockets rumored Kyrie Irving trade interest turns season into fierce audition

The Kyrie Irving situation in Dallas was always one especially prone to speculation this coming season. Lo and behold, NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that teams are angling to target him in a midseason trade, and one club that has been perceived as an interested party is the Houston Rockets.

That rumor casts a triggering spell for players currently in the Rockets roster. This is an indication that Houston's front office is not going to hesitate to make a drastic change to the roster by trying to strike a deal for someone like Irving. Acquiring Irving would mean that the team will be discarding a core player.

Houston has a lot of flexibility in creating an offer for Irving if they truly go that route. The Rockets could either part with one or two of their high-value veterans or jettison a young player or two. Either way, that would presuppose a major midseason shift for the Rockets.

The Rockets are definitely a team that would benefit from bringing someone like Irving into the fold. Their half-court offense had some messy stretches this past season, which culminated in their embarrassing ouster in the first round to a Lakers team that did not have Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.

If this trade smoke thickens, the Rockets would basically be hosting a ruthless audition for their core players. It is crystal clear that there is pressure on the franchise to keep up with its contemporaries out West, and if the current nucleus does not deliver, Irving will certainly be an escape route for the team to do a hard pivot.