NBA Rumors: Houston Rockets must trade Omer Asik, Jeremy Lin to make a big splash

The Houston Rockets have made it clear they want to make a big splash in the offseason.

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New York Knicks’ forward Carmelo Anthony reportedly tops their wish list, they see Minnesota Timberwolves’ power forward Kevin Love as a great fit and will likely show interest in Cleveland Cavaliers’ point guard Kyrie Irving.

However to make a the “big splash” they want to make, they will have to either find a taker for center Omer Asik and point guard Jeremy Lin or include them in a trade for one of those players, writes Bill Ingram of Basketball Insiders.

"Houston Rockets owner Les Alexander made quite an impression when he claimed that his team would make a “big splash” addition this summer. With one quick quote he fired the imaginations of Clutch City fans who were left cold when the team that hoped to contend was ejected from the playoffs in the first round. Several weeks have passed since Alexander dropped that bomb, and rumors are starting to leak out about just which ripples Alexander is targeting. The ever-entertaining, often-wrong rumor mill has it that Houston will chase Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving this summer. Of course, chasing and landing are two different things, as the Rockets have often learned. Here’s a look at the scenarios surrounding each player and how they would help Houston grab a spot in the NBA Finals. In each case, we assume that the Rockets are able to move Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin, either to Minnesota, New York or Cleveland, or to some third team that just wants to take on those balloon-payment ending deals. The Rockets have zero ability to add a big name this summer if they don’t move Asik and Lin in the process."

Asik, who the Rockets thought to be a poor fit next to Dwight Howard, averaged 5.8 points and 7.9 rebounds per game in 48 games last season. Lin went for 12.5 points, 4.1 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game in 71 games.

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