One of the traits of being a good NBA General Manager is recognizing an opportunity even if means taking advantage of someone else's misfortune. The Houston Rockets proposed a trade for Deron Williams right after their center Brook Lopez was declared injured for the entire season.

This was seen as an obligatory move for Houston GM Daryl Morey. He saw a team in need and tried to fill it and taking a top tier player as a bonus. From ESPN:

"According to a league source, the Rockets had preliminary talks with the Nets last week about Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin. Talks never gained any steam, but the source said the Rockets were doing their due diligence and Williams' name came up. The Nets balked because one of the main reasons Pierce and Garnett agreed to a trade to Brooklyn was to play with Williams, according to the source. Williams, who signed a five-year, $98 million extension in 2012, was playing well upon returning from an ankle injury, and the Nets were looking better."

The Nets are facing a dilemma, as they try to determine whether this season, or this core of players is worth keeping. It has the league's biggest payroll, and it has obviously not worked even with the promising play from Lopez. How long will they invest so much in a roster that would not even reach .500?

Asik and Lin may provide some young blood to their line-up and they can have a center they can use now. However, Williams is their franchise player. They gutted their team to acquire Williams, giving the Utah Jazz young assets like Derrick Favors, who is one of the cornerstones they plan to build their future on.

The Nets line-up is an old one. Pierce and Garnett in particular, cannot afford to lose a season. However, their mediocre play is one of the reasons the Nets are this bad. For the Rockets, this confirms the suspicion that Asik was never really out of the table, despite the announcement by the Rockets management.