The 2017-18 season was the Rockets' closest championship trophy in the last few decades, with a 65-17 record in the regular season but ultimately losing to the Warriors after a seven-game series in the Western Conference Finals.
As former Rockets head coach Mike D'Antoni recalls that season, he also expressed regret, because if the Rockets can win the 2018 championship, D'Antoni believes that he, Paul and Harden will still play for the Rockets today:
After that season's defeat, the Rockets' core lineup gradually disintegrated, and after Harden left the team, it completely entered the reconstruction phase.
On the other hand, ESPN reporter Brian Windhorst talked about how James Harden shirked his responsibilities and evaded the consequences many times in a show:
"Because of what James Harden has done over the last three years, he hasn't felt any consequences, and I can't even tell you how disappointing his loss to the Warriors in 2019 was. He shrugged his shoulders, blamed Chris Paul and caused the latter to leave the team. He was unhappy with the Rockets and left that team, and he joined the Nets as he wished, but was traded to Philadelphia after the Nets were unhappy. ”
Harden is also the player who has suffered a lot of controversy this season, not only because of his struggles on the court, but also because he has not been able to handle the relationship with the team and the team well.
Finally, it needs to be discussed that the Rockets are the team that needs to continue to accumulate future assets in this offseason, and the advice given by the US media Greg Patuto is that the Rockets can promote the transaction involving Eric Gordon with the Suns:
The Rockets got: Landry Shamet, Dario Sharic, 2023 second-round picks, 2024 second-round picks
Suns get: Eric Gordon
For the Rockets, pushing for deals involving Gordon and getting them back into future assets is certainly the best option, after all, the Rockets are in the rebuilding phase, and it's no secret that the team wants to put veterans like Gordon on the Rockets.