The Houston Rockets made waves throughout the NBA this summer with the moves they made to upgrade the roster ahead of the 2025-26 season.
As exciting as it always is to welcome the new faces coming to town, there are always others who are removed from the city and fan base just to be traded elsewhere. These are emotional times, especially for players going through the process of being dealt for the first time.
For one of the young players who was shipped to the Phoenix Suns as part of the Kevin Durant deal, that reality is setting in now, and it has him filled with sorrow after being traded as well as excitement over what the future could hold.
Jalen Green Sends Heartbreaking Message in First Remarks Since Trade
No matter where a player may have grown up, the sense of being at home that an athlete feels after being drafted to a particular city is something that stays with them for life. This is especially true for players like Jalen Green, who entered the NBA at the age of 19.
Green, a native of Fresno, Calif., broke his silence following the trade that shipped him from the Lone Star State to the Valley of the Sun while speaking with the media in attendance at the Vegas Summer League and he was open and honest about the pain he felt after being traded away from his "home."
Jalen Green on being with Suns: "We're going to surprise a lot of people and make a lot of noise."
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) July 12, 2025
On trade: "It hurts. Houston is home to me and forever will be home to me."
On playing with Devin Booker: Me and him are going to be a deadly scoring duo." #Suns #Rockets pic.twitter.com/TNoTv12FAe
Green said, "It hurts. Houston is home to me and forever will be home to me."
Being traded is always a tough pill to swallow for any player. Green's approach to it all makes perfect sense, though. After what he helped the Rockets accomplish during his tenure in Houston, the city should feel like a second home to him.
His excitement for what the future holds is the right way to look at how this summer has played out as well. Professional sports are a business. These decisions are very rarely, if ever, personal. In Green's case, he just got caught up in a scenario where one of the greatest players of this generation came available, and, in any sport, you have to trade talent to acquire talent. That is just how the game works at the professional level.
Now, Green has the opportunity to team up with another great guard in Devin Booker to see what they can do to lead Phoenix back to the postseason. It will be different seeing Green suit up in a Suns uniform after only playing for the Rockets during his NBA career thus far. Still, he deserves the welcome he'll ultimately receive upon his first trip back to Houston this coming season.