Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals. Kevin Durant, then of the Golden State Warriors, ruptures his Achilles tendon.
Have you ever ruptured your Achilles tendon? I couldn’t identify my Achilles tendon without AI assistance, but that could be a me problem.
It was clear that something bad had happened. The rabid Toronto Raptors fans, with their focus on a first franchise NBA championship, cheered.
They cheered like Romans in the Colosseum watching a man wrestle a lion, or maybe ancient Greeks watching Achilles
himself at the Stadium of Delphi (historical accuracy potentially sacrificed for continuity). Their insatiable appetite for victory superseded any shred of collective empathy. It was deeply uncomfortable:
And it was human.
It exposed an uncomfortable truth. At a guttural level, we care more about our favorite sports team than we do about a stranger’s Achilles tendon. Sure, we’d rather nobody’s Achilles was torn, but given the choice, you’d have to be pretty naïve to think there’s anything unique about Raptors fans outside of the country they live in.
As Houston Rockets fans, we should try (even in vain) to avoid the same pitfalls. Fans at a live game, digesting information in real time, don’t have the luxury of pausing for thought. Still, that 2019 crowd reaction surely says something about how we might feel, even deep inside, when an opponent is disadvantaged by injury.
Which, finally, brings us to the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace.
Rockets’ championship window may have just opened
Side note: I don’t love the Spurs this season.
OK, fine – I don’t love the Spurs in any season. But this year, objectively, they appear to be in a weird spot.
They’re running a three-guard lineup. Theoretically, that’s supposed to mean sacrificing size for the benefits of speed and a spaced-out floor. The Spurs are getting the speed, but the space is hard to come by. Not one of Stephon Castle, Dylan Harper, or De’Aaron Fox is a particularly feared three-point shooter.
They’re not even compensating at the four. Sure, Victor Wembanyama is, as the French say, grand, but Devin Vassell, the team’s starting four, is a three, and may be a two before he’s a four. The point?
The Rockets can beat this team.
They can beat a Thunder team without Williams and Wallace, both of whom could miss the entire season. Chet Holmgren is banged up too.
The Rockets may well be, with everyone at full strength, the third-best team in the NBA. They are at least in that conversation. So, if the Thunder (and, in a different way, the Spurs) are compromised, there is a window
The Spurs can fix their problems, but it won’t be easy. The obvious trade candidate is Fox, and his contract is dreadful. They erred in acquiring him in the first place, creating an unnecessary logjam (which, for the myriad of Rafael Stone haters, is a testament to how important patience can be in general management). If the trade deadline passes and they look largely the same, this could be the Rockets’ year:
But what does that mean?
Rockets must be smart on the trade market
Success is a convergence of ability and timing.
The Rockets may have a real chance here, but the trade market, at this moment, is best classified as dry.
This summer’s NBA offseason was firm evidence that we’re on a crash course towards the singularity. It was crazy. All the best players who were supposed to move, moved.
Who would the Rockets even pursue?
Kyrie Irving? Puh-shah. Hurrumph. He’s shooting 32.0% from deep so far. He’s averaging 3.7 assists and 2.7 turnovers per game. It’s early, but he’s functionally not Fred VanVleet, and VanVleet’s functionality is pivotal to the Rockets’ game plan. Pass.
Ty Jerome? Perhaps. As of this writing, he’s probably been the best player in the NBA in 2026-27. That won’t hold, but it’s possible that the Grizzlies will be looking for multiple firsts at the deadline. That’s a price worth paying if it’ll put the Rockets over the top. Still, it’s fair to say that chemistry has been a big part of their success, and adding any player of such significance has the potential to disrupt that chemistry.
It doesn’t have to be an all-in push. A more reliable backup big man could be a viable option. A combo big like Jalen Smith would add a new dynamic, or just a Steven Adams / Clint Capela upgrade (in terms of durability in Adams’ case) could work too. Yves Missi, anyone? Is Moussa Diabate too ambitious?
Alternatively, doing nothing might (once again) be the right decision. If the Rockets looked poised to make a title run at the deadline, why fix what isn’t broken?
There are other teams to consider, although the bulk of this piece was written before Anthony Edwards’ injury. The Timberwolves looked like, well, a team with one of the most talented backcourts assembled in league history before he went down.
It should be noted that the Portland Trail Blazers currently have the best Net Rating in the NBA (16.9). That feels like a small sample quirk, but who can say? In the East, the aforementioned Raptors looked strong before Kawhi Leonard’s injury (my God, the pattern). The Knicks will get back on track, and the Pistons are still good.
So, nothing is guaranteed, but the Thunder’s sudden influx of serious injuries meaningfully improves the Rockets’ 2026-27 NBA title window. We should wish Williams and Wallace all the best in their recovery process:
Even if, deep down, our feelings are a bit more complicated.
