A few days ago news broke that Houston has traded Chris Paul for Russell Westbrook. As we all know OKC were looking to blow up their roster and rebuild.
Many people were sure Russ would end up in Miami but we now know thats not the case.
In some senses I feel sorry for Houston, that dreaded game 7 in Houston against Golden State was their chance. I'm convinced if CP3 played that game, Houston would have closed the series and ultimately beat the Cavs but as we know it's all hypothetical.
Last season CP3 was a year older and a worse player and again Houston lost to Golden State.
The Harden-CP3 duo reached its ceiling and with CP3's contract looking worse day by day it was time to move on.
Daryl Morey done well to keep Houston competitive, he could have shipped CP3 off to a bad team but he is always trying to make moves to win.
Bringing in Russell Westbrook does not immediately suit on paper. Harden and Russ both put up a lot of shots, both have high usage rates and both are not great off ball. Next season something has to give and my hope is that Westbrook becomes more self aware and realises he is on James Harden's team.
On the plus side Westbrook has age and health over CP3, something crucial to sustain a title challenge in the West. I feel that with Harden and Russ sharing ball handling duties, they won't be as gassed and should be able to put in more effort on the defensive end.
As of now we have no idea if this experiment will work and I'm 99% sure this team won't get passed either of the LA teams but as we have seen recently, injuries can change everything. I'm really rooting for this team and any time you put 2 all stars together there is a chance of success, Harden and Russ are 2 of my favourites NBA players and I know how well they get on and how much they want to win. I'm sure they will figure out a way to mesh well together.
I think we have to applaud Daryl Morey for always trying to stay relevant in the West and I'm sure they will make some more moves. In terms of the West, Houston have chemistry on their side as I think Westbrook will adapt quickly as he has played with Harden before. Also, D'Antoni's system will allow them both to have a lot of the ball. On the other hand the 2 LA team will have to integrate more pieces to their teams and hopefully Houston can take advantage and finish with a good record in the regular season.
My final thoughts are that right now I think Houston can beat anyone in the West bar the 2 LA teams but with injuries/chemistry uncertain at this point, their title window is still slighty open.