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As the new season drew closer, every team began holding its own media day.

The Western Conference's competitiveness was unprecedented this year, and the attention it received was likewise at an all-time high.

The Rockets' press conference, in particular, became the media's focal point.

Paul, Harden, and Cousins—the Big Three—appeared together, drawing every reporter's gaze.

Joining the Big Three were Capela, Brewer, along with the team's new additions: Tucker, Anderson, West, and others.

After assembling the Big Three, Morey once again showed off his knack for minor deals.

He first re-signed Brewer to a three-year, $24 million contract, then immediately made a trade with the Suns.

The Rockets sent Terrence Jones and Kostas Papanikolaou to the Suns in exchange for PJ Tucker.

The Suns were rebuilding, and an older role player like Tucker did not fit their plans.

Papanikolaou was on a non-guaranteed contract, so waiving him after the trade would clear Salary cap space, while Jones was a promising young player.

In other words, they traded Tucker for Jones while also clearing space, which was not a bad deal for the rebuilding Suns.

Jones had performed well for the Rockets last year, but fans jokingly called him the king of beating up weak teams, saying he could not handle tough games and was poor defensively.

Cousins was not a particularly good defender, so the Rockets had brought back a defensive forward swingman for him.

After that, Morey continued signing Terry, Batum, David West, Andre Miller, and others on veteran minimum deals through the Free Market.

Morey's moves were truly impressive. With a Big Three in place, veteran players naturally came flocking, and the Rockets' roster was highly competitive.

This kind of roster left D'Antoni in high spirits at media day.

"I know it may not be appropriate to say