NBA Rumors: Are Rockets Setting Stage For Possible LeBron James Pursuit?

The 2017-18 version of the Houston Rockets is going to be formidable, to say the least. But the team Houston puts on the floor the following season could be even scarier.

On the heels of a season in which they finished third in the Western Conference and earned a trip to the conference semifinals, the Rockets have been busy this offseason. They’ve already added star point guard Chris Paul, and currently are the apple of Camerlo Anthony’s eye. The team is positioned to contend right away, but their flurry of activity could be part of a larger effort to pursue the NBA’s ultimate prize, according to The Vertical’s Chris Mannix.

“I think LeBron (James) could wind up there,” Mannix recently said on CSNNE’s “Early Edition.” “If the Rockets can get their hands on Carmelo Anthony, they would have two of LeBron’s best friends — Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony — on the same team. They would have James Harden, who played USA Basketball with Carmelo Anthony.

“You’re telling me that those three guys wouldn’t spend the entire season, entire year, recruiting LeBron?”

Of course, this is pure speculation on Mannix’s part, and Houston isn’t the only team reportedly laying the foundation for a pursuit of “King James.”

But given James’ reported frustration with the Cleveland Cavaliers front office, nothing is out of the realm of possibility.

Thumbnail photo via Troy Taormina/USA TODAY Sports Images