Some members of the Rockets regret acquiring Durant: missing Green and Dillon, team atmosphere awkward and tense

On March 20 Beijing time, according to US media Ahn Fire Digital, sources revealed that some members of the Houston Rockets regret the offseason trade to acquire Kevin Durant. The Rockets obtained Durant from the Suns through a massive seven-team trade involving the Nets, Warriors, Hawks, Lakers, and Timberwolves.

To acquire this NBA superstar, the Rockets traded away Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks. Sources say, despite Durant averaging an impressive 25.7 points per game and the Rockets currently ranking fifth in the West, the team's chemistry and atmosphere are far worse than last season.

"Many players miss Jalen and Dillon," a source stated, "Durant hasn't truly connected with anyone here yet."

A source close to the Rockets revealed that if Fred VanVleet had been injured before the Durant trade was completed, the Rockets "likely wouldn't" have made the deal. VanVleet suffered an ACL tear in the summer after the Durant trade; he was the team's spiritual leader, a role Durant never wanted to take on.

Sources say the atmosphere within the Rockets has been "awkward and tense" since the 2026 All-Star break. Although Durant denied on social media that he used burner accounts to criticize teammates Alperen Şengün and Jabari Smith Jr., most Rockets players and executives believe those accounts were indeed Durant's.

After acquiring Durant, the Rockets have extended his contract for two years, with a player option for the 2027-28 season.Sources indicate that Rockets management did not anticipate that the first year of the Durant era would be so "divided and lacking cohesion".