Rockets’ Robert Williams III rises after trade Name Udok

Robert Williams III was one of the key names mentioned in the rumours before 2025 NBA trade deadline. Although it is Portland Trail Blazers aren’t actively looking to move him for anything before the deadline, Williams has generated a lot of buzz dating back to the offseason for his athleticism and rim protection ability. With just over two weeks until the trade deadline, Williams continues to be linked to playoff contending teams, particularly the Houston Rockets.

Head coach Making Udoka and the Rockets front office deserve a lot of credit for building what looks to be one of the most promising young teams in the league. Houston is currently 28-14 this season, second in the Western Conference behind only Shai Gilgee-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green led what turned out to be one of the better defensive teams in the league. It’s no secret to anyone around the league that the Rockets are looking for improvements in their frontcourt in addition to Sengun, and Williams has been linked to the organization since the summer.

Once again, Williams emerged as a prime trade candidate for Houston before the trade deadline, especially after recent interaction with Udok which raised eyebrows around the league.

After Houston’s recent 125-103 win over the Blazers, Williams was seen talking to Udoka and several other members of the Rockets staff, some of whom covered their mouths while talking to the Portland big man. Williams has always liked Udoka’s coaching methods, and he would welcome a reunion with his former Boston Celtics coach, league sources told ClutchPoints. This feeling is mutual, as Udoka has always spoken highly of Williams.

This “friendly” moment between Udoka and Williams, as one league source put it, wasn’t a complete surprise. Williams was genuinely happy to speak with his former coach, who helped him discover his potential. In Udoka’s only season with the Celtics, Williams averaged 10.9 points. 9.6 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game en route to second-team All-Defensive honors and seventh in Defensive Player of the Year voting.

Before the Feb. 6 NBA trade deadline looms, the Rockets have held talks with the Blazers about Williams, sources said. However, these two teams have spoken several times during the season. At no point did these Williams discussions progress to the point where a trade was on the verge of happening. Still, Houston has a strong interest in adding the former defensive center this offseason.

Whether or not the Rockets can bolster their frontcourt alongside Sengun with a player like Williams comes down to their willingness to part with some value in addition to how the Blazers feel about sacrificing a player they’re high on.

Rockets among several commercial suitors

Unfortunately for Williams, health has been the biggest contributing factor to his decline in recent years.

Since playing for Udoka in Boston during the 2021-22 season, the year Williams and the Celtics went to the NBA Finals, the athletic big man has only played in 55 total games due to various knee ailments. After tearing the meniscus in his left knee during In the 2021-22 season, Williams missed the start of the 2022-23 season after electing to undergo another procedure in the offseason.

After being traded to the Blazers in the deal that sent Jrue Holiday to Boston, Williams required surgery to reconstruct a torn ligament in his right knee after suffering a dislocated patella. The injury saw Williams play just six games last season before returning in November. The Blazers center played in just 14 games this year.

Any team looking to pursue Williams before the trade deadline will do so knowing the risk such an addition carries. While there’s potential for a high reward in adding the 27-year-old, it’s also a very risky move for any organization given his extensive knee injury history.

That’s why Williams’ value in trade rumors has been all over the place lately.

What Portland is looking for in a potential Williams trade is a mystery. As for Houston, Tarry Eason would be an attractive young talent for the Blazers, but the Rockets have made it abundantly clear that they are not interested in trading any of their recent first-round picks. Instead, Houston wants to center a trade package around Jock Landale, Ja’Sean Tate and a number of second-round picks for talent like Williams, sources said.

As the Blazers continue to develop during their rebuild, centering Williams’ package on a second-round pick wouldn’t necessarily be their option. After all, Williams is the player Portland specifically wanted in the Holiday trade talks with Boston.

The Rockets, sources say, could be forced to part with a talented young player like Cam Whitmore in the Williams deal. The Blazers don’t just want to dump Williams for whatever they can get before the deadline, as he’s drawing interest from multiple suitors. So there has to be some real value in returning to Portland.

In addition to the Rockets holding talks with the Blazers centered around Williams, the big man has also drawn interest from the LA Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference between the summer and this point in the 2024-25 season. , sources said. Both the Clippers and Lakers are known to be interested in adding frontcourt help before the deadline.

The The Warriors have Williams on the list of several centers they are interested ina list that also includes veterans like Nikola Vucevic, Jonas Valanciunas, Kelly Olynyk and others.

In recent weeks, two other major Eastern Conference teams have inquired about Williams’ availability at the deadline, one firmly in the playoff conversation.

Of course, the decision to trade Williams is one the Blazers will have to discuss internally over the next 16 days. Williams has one year left on his contract, and if Portland doesn’t get what they want in trade talks, they don’t have to move him this season. What the Blazers decided to do is a key question that no one has an answer to.

Blazers’ feelings on Robert Williams III trade

Last season was not kind to the Blazers without Damian Lillard. Portland finished the year with just 21 wins, their second fewest in franchise history. This year hasn’t gone much better for Chauncey Billups and his Portland crew, as they are currently 14-28 overall.

During their rebuild, the Blazers saw Scoot Henderson take a step in the right direction next to Anfernee Simmons in their backcourt. It’s also become clearer that rookie big man Donovan Clingan is the future of the franchise’s frontcourt given Deandre Ayton’s struggles and uncertainty in Portland.

At some point, the Blazers will be forced to decide between Williams, Ayton and Duop Ritt — three players who won’t stay in this team’s frontcourt for long. Before the trade deadline, sources said, Reath is another inexpensive big man who has drawn interest from multiple playoff-contending teams. Aiton has practically no market at the moment.

Finding balance at the center position will be key for this organization, which is why Aiton is beginning to look like a strange man in Portland and players they would prefer to trade in their frontcourt, sources said. So what does this mean for Williams’ status with the Blazers?

Portland still isn’t sold one way or the other on trading Williams and is simply looking to the market for what his possible return could look like in the next two weeks. The decision on whether to trade Williams will come down to whether the Blazers believe they are getting a good enough return for the player they specifically wanted from the Celtics.

As for the Rockets’ pursuit of Williams, the two expiring salaries of Landale and Tate likely wouldn’t move the needle, even if a multiple second-round pick was attached to said deal. If Houston were to offer Landale, Whitmore and two or three second-round picks, that should get Portland’s stamp of approval.

The Rockets love Williams and believe his skill set is exactly what they currently lack in the frontcourt. It remains to be seen if Houston wants to capitalize on its championship potential this season by bolstering the frontcourt with a name familiar to Udoki.