Houston Rockets power forward Terrence Jones (middle) fights off the double team of the Denver Nuggets' Emmanuel Mudiay and Danilo Gallinari. (Photo : Getty Images)
NBA trade rumors that "multiple teams have expressed interest" in Houston Rockets versatile forward Terrence Jones have surfaced since last week. As the league approaches the December 15 deadline to trade recently signed free agents, things will surely get busy in Houston to possibly deal their most valuable trade chip right now.
The Rockets have improved slightly over the past few weeks after the firing of head coach Kevin McHale and are currently at the eighth spot in the West with an 11-12 record.
It would be safe to assume that GM Daryl Morey is still not satisfied with where the team is headed as he is looking to build Houston as a championship contender soonest, which could lead to some huge trades involving his players.
Fansided reported that "one of the players capturing the attention of teams across the league is Terrence Jones".
Playing as the main backup at the power forward spot for Clint Capela, the 23-year-old stretch four is averaging 10.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in a little over 25 minutes a night in 18 games so far for Houston. These numbers are quite impressive for a young player, but his full potential seems to be not maximized where he is right now.
Enter the Toronto Raptors.
The report noted that the Raptors could use some help to strengthen their interior defense, which is one of Toronto's weaknesses at the moment.
Luis Scola is the Raptors' starter at no. 4 with Patrick Patterson, James Johnson, and Anthony Bennett as backups. The first two power forwards are said to have the same versatility as that of Jones, but the former Kentucky standout is much better in defense.
A one-on-one swap for Johnson is approved by the ESPN NBA Trade Machine, although it seems likely that the Rockets will try to ask for more for them to be persuaded to let go of their prized young big man.
