Houston Rockets: 5 options for pick No. 43 in 2017 NBA Draft

The Houston Rockets hold a pair of second round picks in the 2017 NBA Draft, with their earliest pick coming at No. 43.

The Houston Rockets have had recent success drafting in the second round. They have selected NBA rotation players such as Montrezl Harrell, Isaiah Canaan and Chandler Parsons.

If the Rockets want to take the next step in the tough Western Conference, they should hope that trend continues in the 2017 NBA Draft.

Houston doesn’t hold a first round pick as they sent it to the Los Angeles Lakers, along with Corey Brewer, in exchange for Lou Williams.

The Rockets are picking at No. 43 after a trade with the Denver Nuggets during the summer of 2015. Houston received Denver’s second round pick, along with Ty Lawson, in exchange for a plethora of assets including Joey Dorsey, Nick Johnson, Kostas Papanikolaou, Pablo Prigioni, Houston’s lottery-protected 2016 first round pick and cash considerations.

The trade turned out to be a dud for Daryl Morey, as Lawson didn’t even last the whole season in Houston. He played 53 games and averaged 5.8 points and 3.4 assists per game.

Lawson was waived by the Houston Rockets on March 1 and signed with the Indiana Pacers six days later.

Getting back to the 43rd pick in this year’s draft, the Rockets will have a few intriguing prospects to choose from in the second round. One interesting choice they have is to draft a player who won’t come over to the NBA right away. This will allow the Rockets to save some money and attempt to sign a big-name free agent with their remaining cap space.

If the Rockets do choose to draft a player who is likely to play in the NBA this season, they can use the extra roster spots created by the CBA this year.

Overall, the Rockets have multiple options at 43rd overall, depending on which direction they want to go.