Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets and FBI are investigating a cyber attack against the NBA franchise's networks. 

Per Kartikay Mehrotra of Bloomberg on Thursday, the Rockets confirmed an "attempted intrusion" from a "relatively new ransomware group that claims to have stolen internal business data."

Rockets spokesperson Tracey Hughes said in a statement to Mehrotra the attempted attack did not impact the organization's operations. 

"It appears that the unknown actors attempted to install ransomware on certain internal systems at the Rockets," Hughes said. "However, our internal security tools prevented ransomware from being installed except for a few systems that have not impacted our operations."

According to Mehrotra, hacking group Babuk claimed to have stolen 500 gigabytes of Rockets data that includes contracts and non-disclosure agreements and is "threatening to publish it if the team declines to pay."

The group gained prominence earlier this year for a digital extortion attack on outsoucring company Serco.   

The Houston Rockets are reportedly going to release Ben McLemore. 

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, the Rockets plan to waive McLemore, and "several contenders" are expected to have interest in adding him. 

The Rockets signed McLemore to a two-year contract as a free agent in July 2019. The second year of his deal was only partially guaranteed at signing, but it became fully guaranteed in January 2020. 

McLemore is only earning $2.283 million in base salary with Houston this season. 

There was speculation leading up to the trade deadline that the Rockets would be able to move the 28-year-old. The Athletic's Kelly Iko reported on March 12 that "a number of contenders" were showing interest in McLemore. 

Under the NBA's waiver process, teams can put in a claim on McLemore. If multiple clubs put in a claim, he will be assigned to the one with the lowest winning percentage. 

If no teams claim him during the 48-hour waiver period, McLemore will become a free agent and eligible to sign with any team. 

Now in his eighth NBA season, McLemore can be a contributor off the bench for a contender that needs more depth. The Kansas alum is only averaging 7.4 points per game in 32 appearances this season, but he's a career 36.3 percent shooter from three-point range. 

Houston Rockets general manager Rafael Stone has zero doubts about trading James Harden for Victor Oladipo as part of a four-team deal with the Brooklyn Nets, Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this season.   

After dealing Oladipo to the Miami Heat at last week's trade deadline, there's plenty of hindsight but zero remorse.

Stone told reporters Monday:

"I would for sure, 100 percent, do that deal again. Again, you guys don't have the advantages of knowing everything I know, but literally no part of me regrets doing that deal. I have not second-guessed it for a moment.

"A lot of what I said about being in a position maybe to not have to be bad [to rebuild], there's some other things that we've done, too, but it's primarily that deal that's allowed us to say, 'Hey, we want to compete on a slightly quicker time frame.' We're not going to go down this path of intentionally trying to lose games for years on end."

Essentially, the Rockets traded Harden in the prime of his career for Oladipo, the Nets' first-round picks in 2022, 2024 and 2026 and the right to swap first-round selections with the Nets in 2021, 2023, 2025 and 2027. Houston then sent Oladipo to Miami for Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk and a 2022 draft-pick swap. 

There's never a guarantee that draft picks will amount to anything—let alone an MVP-caliber shooting guard who can get a triple-double at will—but that doesn't mean Stone was wrong to make the trades he did. 

Harden wanted out of Houston, and Oladipo wasn't going to help the team's future. 

With Christian Wood, Jae'Sean Tate and Kevin Porter Jr. as the franchise's building blocks, the Rockets might not need to suffer through years of a rebuild in order to contend again. But they weren't going to get back to the playoffs by holding onto talent looking to win now.

Stone is trying to keep his mind focused on that bigger picture.

"I think we felt at the time that we did the best deal for the franchise possible," he said. "Obviously, that's my job, so I did it. Particularly given the types of things we got back, yeah, it feels like you can't possibly know how you did for multiple years—like three, five, something like that. But I feel good about it. I do feel good about it."

The Houston Rockets intend to finish out the season with John Wall on the roster and are not discussing a buyout with the point guard, according to Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes. 

Houston continued to make strides with its rebuild on Thursday by reportedly dealing guard Victor Oladipo to the Miami Heat for Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk and a swap of draft picks, per Shams Charania of The Athletic. 

Wall is averaging 21.0 points, 6.3 assists and 3.4 rebounds through 29 games this season after missing the majority of the last two seasons with left heel and Achilles injuries. 

Wall has one year and $44.3 million remaining on his current contract as well as a player option in 2022-23 for $47.4 million, should he choose to exercise it.

Considering Wall's contract was fully guaranteed when he signed the four-year deal with the Washington Wizards, it wouldn't make sense for him to grant the Rockets any relief in buyout talks unless, for instance, there were assurances he would be able to join a contender for the rest of the season.

Even then, he'd be forfeiting plenty of cash that he's unlikely to earn in free agency. 

Instead he'll stick around Houston while the franchise rebuilds with the likes of Christian Wood, Jae'Sean Tate and Kevin Porter Jr.

This is likely nowhere near the outcome the Rockets (12-31) expected when they sent Russell Westbrook to the Wizards for Wall and a protected 2023 first-round pick, but after numerous injuries up and down the roster, a 20-game losing streak and inconsistent play across the board, there were few palatable options remaining.  

It appears the two sides will pick the option that keeps them together for the foreseeable future. 

Houston Rockets point guard John Wall was seen yelling in a players-only huddle following a timeout during the second half of his team's 122-97 loss to the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday.

When asked about the occurrence following the game, Rockets head coach Stephen Silas provided the following response to reporters:

Wall said "no comment" when questioned about the timeout huddle.

It's been a frustrating season for the 12-31 Rockets, who recently ended a 20-game losing streak after a 117-99 win over the Toronto Raptors on Monday. A jubilant Silas and Wall were seen hugging each other postgame:

However, the Rockets were unable to build off that momentum Wednesday after they were outscored 35-15 in the third quarter en route to a 25-point loss. The timeout in question occurred during that rough stretch, which ultimately led to Houston's demise.

The Rockets will look to get back in the win column Friday when they visit the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Houston Rockets are "engaged on several fronts in trade talks" regarding guard Victor Oladipo, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.  

Oladipo is out due to personal reasons for the Rockets' game against the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday. The absence is not basketball- or trade-related, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, who noted there is a "very good chance" Oladipo will find a new home before Thursday's deadline.

Oladipo has averaged 21.2 points, 5.0 assists and 4.8 rebounds for the Rockets, who added the ex-Indiana Pacers guard in a four-team blockbuster that saw James Harden head to the Brooklyn Nets.

The Miami Heat and New York Knicks are the likeliest teams to trade for Oladipo before the deadline, per Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic. However, both teams are "reluctant to offer premium packages," according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Any team trading for Oladipo assumes a certain risk level given that he can leave via free agency this summer. It's possible the team that lands him before the deadline could have him for only a few months during the regular season's stretch run and the playoffs.

Still, the Knicks and Heat have plenty of cap space for a potential Oladipo deal, presuming they're interested in signing him long-term. New York has the most cap space in the league, in fact, while Miami is fifth.

For now, Miami and New York are among a group of teams fighting for a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Heat and Knicks have matching 22-22 records that place them in a sixth-place tie. They are one half-game behind the Atlanta Hawks for fourth.

The Houston Rockets have plenty of players they could shop before Thursday's trade deadline, but they're not having much luck in enticing potential trade partners regarding several players. 

According to Kelly Iko, David Aldridge and Danny Leroux of The Athletic, forward Danuel House is garnering the most interest out of a trio that also includes guards Sterling Brown and Ben McLemore, but none of the players are too sought-after in the final days before the deadline. 

House, who is in his third season in Houston following a quiet start to his career with the Washington Wizards and the Phoenix Suns, has appeared in 26 games for the Rockets this season. He is averaging 9.7 points on 40.7 percent shooting—a career low—and 4.0 rebounds through 28.1 minutes per game. 

According to The Athletic report, "interest in McLemore has cooled recently," and the team may waive him following Thursday's deadline. 

McLemore is averaging 6.6 points and 2.2 rebounds through 16.0 minutes per game, making 28 appearances on a loaded depth chart that includes Victor Oladipo and Kevin Porter Jr. in front of him at shooting guard. 

As for Brown, one executive told The Athletic that the fourth-year player—who joined the team off of three seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks—is considered to be "more of a 'filler'" in trade negotiations rather than a headline player. 

Brown has collected a career-high 7.6 points on 42.7 percent shooting through 23.9 minutes per game, with 40 appearances this season.

Of course, the top player to be had out of Houston is Oladipo, who according to The Athletic has been the subject of trade negotiations with more than one team. 

The New York Knicks and Miami Heat are reportedly "reluctant" to offer a premium trade package to the Houston Rockets for Victor Oladipo ahead of Thursday's deadline. 

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported a market has instead developed among capped-out teams offering packages that include a young player and/or a first-round draft pick(s).

Wojnarowski wrote it's "likely" the Rockets will trade Oladipo ahead of the deadline. Marc Berman of the New York Post reported the Knicks are only interested in an Oladipo trade if the two-time All-Star would commit to the franchise long term.  

Houston acquired Oladipo as part of the four-team deal that sent James Harden to Brooklyn, a move that seemed odd at the time and has only gotten worse as the Rockets season spirals out of control. The Rockets could have simply kept Caris LeVert—the exact type of player they're seemingly seeking in exchange for Oladipo—rather than trading for a veteran on an expiring contract.

The Knicks and Heat have been regularly mentioned among Oladipo's suitors if he hits the free-agency market, and both teams will have significant cap space this summer. However, it does not appear there's any urgency to get a deal done before the deadline—understandable given Oladipo's relatively shaky play this season.

The 28-year-old is averaging 20.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists this season, solid numbers that ultimately pale in comparison to his previous All-Star production. He has struggled to reach the heights of his 2017-18 season since rupturing his right quad tendon and undergoing surgery during the following campaign. As a result of his recovery, he also missed all but 19 games last season.

If the Rockets are able to recoup a LeVert-quality player in exchange for Oladipo, they should consider themselves lucky. 

The Houston Rockets could end up "selling very low" on Victor Oladipo ahead of Thursday's trade deadline, a league executive told Kelly Iko, David Aldridge and Danny Leroux of The Athletic. 

The guard's trade value is considered "low enough that someone who has little chance of keeping him may not care and would take a flier on him with no promises of retaining him," the executive said. "So the market is wider than people think because the value is lower than people anticipated."

Oladipo will be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason, which could make this trade only a short rental for a playoff push.

The 28-year-old is averaging 20.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game in 29 appearances this season with the Indiana Pacers and Rockets.

Houston acquired Oladipo as part of the four-team trade that sent James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets, although the team has fallen apart since then. The Rockets lost 20 straight games until finally beating the Toronto Raptors Monday night while Oladipo was inactive.

It could lead to a second trade this season and the fourth of the player's eight-year career.

Oladipo earned two All-Star selections at his best and averaged 23.1 points, 5.2 rebounds and a league-high 2.4 steals per game in 2017-18. A quad injury has derailed his career, but he remains a high-upside player with his scoring ability and perimeter defense.

If a contender doesn't trade for him this week, a rebuilding team could still have interest with the hopes of signing a long-term deal.

"Vic's health is still a lingering question, but someone may want his Bird rights," an Eastern Conference executive told The Athletic.

The acquiring team would be able to offer Oladipo a five-year deal in free agency compared to the four-year deal available to other organizations, providing a potential inside track at a top available player.

Without a high price tag, it could be worth the risk for many interested teams.