The Houston Rockets were a little over 16 minutes away from taking that next step in 2018 but just couldn’t quite make it over the hump. A combination of bad luck, questionable officiating and those damn Golden State Warriors just seemed to always get in the way. The most frustrating part is that Houston was right there at the cusp, and it’s always made me wonder how it would have unfolded if they just had one more piece.
2017-18 will be the biggest “what if?” due to Chris Paul’s brutal hamstring injury in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals, but the other question I’ve been pondering is if the following season could have been salvaged by yet another blockbuster trade.