Houston Rockets: Three questions to ask about the sale of the team

The Houston Rockets are for sale. This is not a troll, a drill, or hyperbole. Team president Tad Brown announced as of 2:37 p.m CDT that the Houston Rockets are now on the market.

Long-time Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander has elected to pursue other ventures and spend more time with his family. In Alexander’s tenure as owner, the Houston Rockets have won two titles, been one of the most philanthropic presences in the NBA, and have helped to usher in the modern NBA era of analytics and scheme.

Alexander purchased the Houston Rockets for $85 million in 1993. Throughout Alexander’s tenure, the Rockets have been one of the most, if not the most, successful professional sports franchises in Houston – though, sports radio would not lead you to believe such.

Alexander stands to make quite a bit of money on his investment. The Houston Rockets, per Forbes, are valued at $1.65 billion, good for 8^th most valuable franchise in the NBA. Expect the team to sell for more than the Forbes valuation, however. The most recent franchises to have sold all returned greater than their valuations. The Clippers ($2 billion, in 2014), Bucks ($500 million, in 2014), Kings ($338 million in 2012), Grizzlies ($377 million, 2012), and Pelicans ($338 million, in 2012) all sold above their general market valuations.

The Rockets are in the midst of pursuing the Golden State Warriors for Western Conference supremacy and ownership questions just injected uncertainty into the situation. Among key questions for Rockets fans to keep in mind are the following:

Will the incoming owner retain the current management structure?

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Ownership changes create major instability for a front office. As a Buffalo fan, the transition method employed by the Pegulas (for bad franchises) would make sense in Houston. Retain the incumbent staff and evaluate their performance. Daryl Morey and the talent network that has developed in Houston has, at the very least, earned an evaluation period, let alone a firm commitment to their retention.

Will new players turn away from Houston?

The talent on the court is apparent. The identity, commitment, and vision of a new owner, however, is not. Out of all of the summers to contemplate a change in ownership, Morey is in good position regardless of the next team owner. Should the Paul/Harden experiment fail, the Rockets are able to be free agency players next season. Any incoming owner can clearly see the team is committed to Harden for the long term and a title contender takes the court.

What’s the new owner’s vision?

The Rockets play a very specific brand of basketball. From the ground up, the team is committed to this style. Alexander has shown a penchant for up-tempo basketball (Two of his last three coaching hires were up-tempo guys in Rick Adelman and Mike D’Antoni). New ownership means, potentially, new direction.

At the end of the day, Leslie Alexander has cultivated this team and shows a deep personal, as well as emotional, investment in the team and its fans. Any potential buyer will have to sell Alexander on stewardship of a team on its way to an NBA Title. Alexander has pumped over 20 years of his life into the franchise, suffered the heartbreak of the Yao Ming/Tracy McGrady era, helped the Gulf Coast after it endured Hurricane Katrina, and stands close by to Dikembe Mutombo and Hakeem Olajuwon’s work in Africa. Alexander will, no doubt, seek a similarly engaged owner. It’s the least he can do for his legacy.

For now, we as fans need to watch the sale of the team closely. Rockets fans should be vocal about their expectations for an owner who is all in on a title in 2017 and 2018. To a lesser extent, fans must anchor sale and transition of the team towards preserving Les Alexander’s legacy. The Rockets are a major part of the fabric of Houston; no matter how much talk the Texans get or how much hype the Astros drive, the only major team to have brought a title to the city plays in the Toyota Center.

Next: Why the Rockets will win Carmelo Anthony

We here at House of Houston will keep you up to date on the owner search. Stay tuned here and follow me on Twitter (@QuestionablyBD) for takes on the Rockets ownership situation (And various other stupid stuff).

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