Rockets

• Everyone wonders if swapping Chris Paul for Russell Westbrook makes the Rockets better or worse. My boring take: They are about the same — a really good team that probably isn’t going to win the title. The trio of Westbrook, James Harden and coach Mike D’Antoni is talented and creative enough to paper over Westbrook’s busted jumper, but only so much. You never know what the backup wings and bigs are giving you night to night. An injury to P.J. Tucker is death against LeBron and Leonard.

But the Rockets don’t get enough credit for being the only Western Conference team to compete at all with the Durant-era Warriors. Those Warriors are the only team to beat Houston — or really even trouble them — in the playoffs since the Rockets paired Paul and Harden. The Westbrook/Harden/Eric Gordon/Tucker/Clint Capela grouping should be a championship-level closing lineup.

Houston deserves to be grandfathered into the top tier. I am a little afraid of what hard-chargin’ Tilman Fertitta might pull in the event of a slow start. He could fire everyone and install himself as GM, coach, and head chef. He could also mandate the kind of nutty all-in trade (R.I.P. Nene contract) that fortifies the 2019-20 Rockets even if it hamstrings the team’s future.

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