What Ime Udoka said about the point guard trade amid the noise

Will the Houston The Rockets trade for a point guard at the deadline or has a coach Making Udoka has filled the void left by Fred VanVleet’s season-ending ACL injury? Before Josh Okogie started 25 games this season, Amen Thompson and Reed Shepard split time as the Rockets’ starting point guards. However, prior to the current three-game winning streak, Houston had dropped six of its previous seven games, including a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Some believe the Rockets must trades for the starting quarterback to compete with the defending champion Thunder. Udoka, on the other hand, thinks otherwise, says Michael C. Wright of ESPN.

“The name (Udoka) told me he wasn’t going to get a point guard at the deadline,” Wright said. “They said, ‘Hey, the second apron is what it is,’ and you didn’t have a lot of money to work with anyway. So there’s no helping you get better unless Fred VanVleet comes back to the playoffs, which we’ve talked about. That’s a goal, certainly, not a guarantee.”

While Ime Udoka claims the Rockets aren’t interested in trading for the starting point guard, that doesn’t mean the front office agrees, as talented guards such as the Memphis Grizzlies’ Ja Morant, the Chicago Bulls’ Kobe White and the Toronto Raptors’ Immanuel Quickley are rumored to.

Other viable options, such as Boston Celtics’ Anfernee Simmons and Cleveland’s Lonzo Ball, were also guards reportedly discussed during trade talks.

Will the Rockets trade for a starting point guard at the deadline?

Rockets GM Raphael Stone will have to make some tough decisions ahead of this year’s trade deadline. While the Rockets appeared to be title contenders heading into the 2025-26 season, teams like the Spurs, Nuggets and Lakers have better or nearly identical records halfway through the campaign.

Stone had a very busy offseason in his quest to build a championship roster, which began with the blockbuster trade for Kevin Durant and the signings of free agents such as Dorian Finney-Smith and Clint Capela. He also re-signed Josh Okogie and acquired JD Davison for depth at the point guard position behind Fred VanVleet. A season-ending injury to the starting point guard at the end of the season threw a wrench into Stone’s custom-made supporting lineup for Durant.

However, as Durant’s first season with the team continues with the hope that the second half of their regular season momentum will continue throughout, is this the time to trade for a starting point guard or stick with the offense?