NBA Trade Rumors: Rajon Rondo For Chandler Parsons, Jeremy Lin Revisited! Houston Forward's Trade Value Has Skyrocketed! Will Celtics Bite Now?

The Houston Rockets went crashing to Earth when their title hopes were quashed by the Portland Trailblazers. It led them to some serious roster evaluation. They have good pieces but maybe not the right ones.

The domination of Damian Lillard at the point guard position showed the Rockets their glaring weakness. They were also unable to execute when they let James Harden facilitate and Dwight Howard just could not get enough touches.

The Rockets already had Rondo within reach prior to the trade deadline, but they refused because they did not want to trade Parsons. They thought that they did not need an upgrade that bad since they had Jeremy Lin.

But Jeremy Lin only had one good game in their first round match-up. The Rockets won't advance with that kind of floor leadership.

Marc Stein of ESPN validates the speculation:

"It's inevitable that Rockets general manager Daryl Morey will likewise check in with his old boss Danny Ainge in Boston -- as he did before the trade deadline in February -- just to make sure Rajon Rondo isn't suddenly available.

Parsons is the Rocket every rival team tries to steal. Boston would insist on Parsons if Rondo-to-Houston talks ever got serious."

Lin is overpriced at $15 million but his contract is expiring. The same goes for Rondo, although at a slightly lower price tag. Houston needs a desirable piece for Boston to bite into a disadvantageous trade. Now more than ever, it's Parsons.

Last year, the Celtics were interested in Omer Asik but the interest has waned because Asik has a similar contract with Lin, and you will have two overpriced players on your roster, although they are expiring.

But Boston can always dump their bad contracts-confined now to Gerald Wallace to Houston. It was always their policy to package him along with Rondo.

If Boston pulls the trigger, they will still get the flexibility they need next season. The 2015 free agents are becoming more attractive, with LaMarcus Aldridge developing into an MVP type player.