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With one week remaining before the NBA’s trade deadline, the Rockets’ front office has been busy on the phone. Also, the sun rose in the east.

This season, however, the usual trade talks are expected to bring a deal, likely far from the sort of blockbuster that fills conjecture but more than just a shuffle of players at the end of the bench.

The Rockets could still be bold. They offered four first-round picks for Jimmy Butler (without including coveted talent in the proposal) and would seem willing to be even more aggressive in pursuit of Pelicans star and league-wide trade-deadline focal point Anthony Davis. But the sense throughout the league is that New Orleans is hesitant to deal Davis until the offseason, when the Celtics can be involved and offers can be richer.

Having been unable to swing deals at their previous self-imposed deadlines — in December in time for players involved to be aggregated in subsequent deals and in January when they wanted to move Carmelo Anthony in time to use his roster spot for Kenneth Faried — the Rockets are, according to individuals with knowledge of their thinking, confident they will make a change at the actual deadline.

The Rockets have been extremely active in talks, which usually indicates general manager Daryl Morey has not lost his cellphone. But this season, the intensity of talks began earlier than usual because of the efforts to move Anthony, resulting in the trade with the Bulls, and because of the search at the time for help because of injuries.

That has led many to believe that in a league unusually crowded with trade-deadline buyers, the Rockets are among the most likely to make a deal.

This is not unusual. Until last season, Morey had agreed to a trade at or around the deadline in every season he had been a general manager. But with the Rockets again holding an open roster spot, he seems at least as likely to seek to upgrade the roster in the post-deadline free-agent market, as he did last season.

With the in-season additions of Austin Rivers and Kenneth Faried, Morey might already have made those sorts of moves. He also has refocused his deadline targets.

A month before the deadline, the Rockets had moved from the season-long expectation to look for a 3-point shooting small forward to looking for whatever help they could land, especially depth at center. That has changed back to a pursuit of a versatile forward with one potential slight adjustment.

The Rockets, according to those familiar with talks so far, seem to be hoping to land a forward who fits as a versatile defender with catch-and-shoot skills but who also could help with their poor defensive rebounding.

That has indicated more of a potential interest in Memphis’ JaMychal Green, one individual familiar with their thinking said, than Garrett Temple (who would otherwise fit well). It would also indicate far less of a chance to chase Courtney Lee or Kent Bazemore, players who don’t fit with the rebuilding Knicks and Hawks and who previously had been thought to be potential Rockets targets.

Faried’s production makes the Rockets far less likely to pursue a center such as the Hawks’ Dewayne Dedmon than they were a few weeks ago. The strong play of Eric Gordon since his return from a knee injury along with Chris Paul’s return from a strained hamstring and Rivers’ play makes the Rockets even more unlikely to seek guard depth.

The Rockets also could seek to deal players outside the rotation. Yahoo Sports reported that Marquese Chriss has expressed a desire to be moved if he remains out of the rotation, but the Rockets did not need to hear how he felt to be open to that. The $15.6 million left on Brandon Knight’s contract next season will make him difficult to move, especially if there is no larger deal in which his contract is needed to make the salaries work.

The Rockets would be open to bringing back a shorter deal, but there has been no discussion about seeking a way to deal Knight’s contract to get under the luxury tax. (Only Sacramento has the kind of cap room needed to reduce the Rockets’ payroll that much in a two-team deal.)

The Rockets are willing to use their first-round pick to sweeten offers, but after three drafts without a first-round selection, they do not plan to use the pick just to move a contract, two persons with knowledge of their plans said. The Rockets also have three trade exceptions, ranging from roughly $1 million to $2.6 million, and would add to their tax bill if those exceptions are needed.

Weeks after there seemed to be a logjam of teams looking to improve their playoff chances and not enough teams ready to deal, the sense has changed, with the Pelicans and Grizzlies in particular seeming to have moved to seller mode. The Wizards and Magic have been more difficult to gauge, though both have remained in position to chase playoff spots.

Most talk a week before the deadline is information gathering, but general managers know the deadline pressure to make moves is fast approaching. Several said there has been enough of an uptick in conversation that they expect a busier trade season than had been anticipated a few weeks ago.

The Rockets expect to be in the thick of that. They usually do. This season, there is optimism to go with the goal.

jonathan.feigen@chron.com

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