US media gave the Rockets a 1-for-1 plan, and Leonard will be exchanged for Beverly in the future. Is this transaction feasible?

Houston Rockets point guard Van Vleet suffered a torn ACL before the 2025-2026 NBA season began, disrupting the team's plans for the new season.

NBA experts predict that Houston will be a strong contender for the championship even in the highly competitive Western Conference. Van Vreet signed a new $50 million contract with the team this summer and was supposed to be a key player for the Rockets, responsible for holding the ball and passing the ball to his teammates.

Of course, for the Rockets, the Rockets will definitely not change the established goal of the entire season due to the injury of a starting player, even if the Rockets' goal is to continue playing in the game according to the current players, it is the championship.

Then there is another new problem now. If the point guard vacancy issue is inevitable during the season, what are the plans for the team to strengthen in the middle of the season?

Eric Pincus, a reporter who plays for "Open Stands", gave the Rockets a tip: his suggestion is that the Rockets send Ethan away + trade specials for the Kings Keon Ellis + a second round pick.

What do you think of this deal? I personally think that from the current perspective, the Rockets do not need to make any trades.

First of all, this so-called 2-for-2 is an example. It ignores the tiny exceptions of the second round of picks and transactions. This is actually a one-to-one transaction. So, the first question is: Ethan or Ellis, who is the better player?

Keon Ellis is undoubtedly a good player. Just ask the Golden State Warriors. They are currently mediating with the Kings and Kumingga. The King was willing to send away the sixth candidate Monk for the Warriors 1 for 1 and refused to send Ellis away. The Warriors had previously stated that if the King was willing to leave Ellis, they would agree to sign with the King first and then exchange Kuminga.

But even though Ellis has a good reputation from the outside world, the answer is undoubtedly Tari Ethan.

role players generally value on the efficiency of the field, and Ethan is better at both offense and defense than Keon Ellis. In Box Plus/Minus (BPM) data, Ethan is even the best in the league with +3.6 points, far higher than Ellis' 1.9 points.

Ethan is probably the best offensive rebounding wing in the NBA, and his ability to create a mess of passing routes is almost unparalleled. His biggest problem is injuries. The deal is even impossible to talk about without considering the additional impact of the injury.

But that doesn't mean that Ellis is not a promising young player. He is excellent. Ellis has proven himself to be a good young outside defender. He hit an astonishing 43.3% of his three-pointers in the 2024-25 season. However, despite his many advantages, his playing style is not a replacement for VanVleet.

Ellis was able to deliver 2.25 assists per 75 offensive rounds in the 2024-25 season. Ellis is not a point guard. Of course, he can play No. 1 and let the offense revolve around Alperen Shinkin, but it would be short-sighted to trade Essen for a player who can't even fill the Rockets' roster.

So I personally think that the Eric Pincus deal is not feasible at the moment. The Rockets' internal point guard option actually has three options: Shepard, Aaron Holiday, and JD Davidson. Amen may also be transformed into a player who can share the ability of the No. 1 position.

However, Pincus's idea also gives the Rockets a certain amount of room for imagination. If Tari Ethan does not reach a contract renewal with the team during the season, he can use the value of his remaining contract to exchange for a shooting guard with certain point guards at the same level (Keon Ellis is indeed a reasonable option), which is also feasible.

Do you think the Rockets have other trading plans that can put out the fire during the season?