When time was up for the NBA trade deadline on Thursday, the Rockets had only made one move, and it was one that came as a bit of a surprise.

The Rockets traded third-string point guard Aaron Brooks to the Denver Nuggets for forward Jordan Hamilton.

Trade speculation had swirled for weeks before the deadline about the Rockets’ moving backup center Omer Asik, who hasn’t been happy about becoming a backup to Dwight Howard. There were other rumors as well, but at the end of the day, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said the team wasn’t looking to make a lot of changes.

“We feel like as a team, we are coming together at the right time. We had a lot of opportunities to mix things up but we feel like we have a core with stars in Dwight (Howard) and James (Harden) and we have a group around them that we feel good about and we feel like when you have that core, you want to keep the guys around them,” Morey said.

Because Brooks was on a one-year deal with the Rockets, he had to approve the trade.

“It was a tough decision — an opportunity to play, that was the main factor,” Brooks said Thursday.

This season was Brooks’ second tour with the Rockets. The point guard played for the Rockets from 2007-10 and was the team’s leading scorer in the 2009-10 season with 19.6 points per game. He was also named the NBA’s Most Improved Player that season. Brooks is one of Houston’s fan favorites and said Tuesday that he was happy to be in Houston.

“Houston is in my heart,” he said. “I’ve been in Houston so long.”

Brooks averaged 7.0 points and 1.9 assists for the Rockets this season. He was the team’s third point guard behind Pat Beverley and Jeremy Lin. While Brooks hasn’t been playing much lately, he filled in earlier when injuries sidelined Beverley and Lin.

“Aaron Brooks is obviously someone who won a couple of games for us while he was here and is a fan favorite so it was very tough to move him on to Denver,” Morey said.

Brooks said he spoke with Nuggets coach Brian Shaw and forward Jared Jeffries late Wednesday night. That helped him make the decision.

“I think things (in Denver) are going to turn around,” Brooks said. “I have to go out and play, especially on a one-year deal.

“Denver’s a great team, a great organization. I kept going back and forth. It was hard to OK a deal. I think it’s a good situation. I guess I’m taking a leap of faith. You can’t really show anything when you’re not playing.”

Morey said the Rockets have had their eyes on Hamilton for awhile because of his athleticism and skill.

“His shooting and he is a really great rebounder,” Morey said. “One of our issues at the wing is when Dwight (Howard) goes to block a shot, our rebounding behind him has been challenged and we think Jordan can come in and shore that up. If he gets into the rotation – he will obviously be competing with some good players there like (Francisco) Garcia and (Omri) Casspi – we think he has a real chance to help us.

Hamilton is averaging 6.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game this season for the Nuggets and has started in 11 games.

“He is really a highly-regarded prospect and hasn’t had a chance to emerge,” Morey said. “That is usually the kind of guy we do really well with, catch him before they get a chance and see them flourish with us.”

Hamilton played two seasons at Texas before entering the NBA draft in 2011.

Morey said the improvement of rookie guard Isaiah Canaan played a role in the Rockets’ decision to trade Brooks. Canaan averaged 21.8 points, 8.2 assists and 4.0 rebounds with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers this season.

“He has played very, very well in the D-League and the coaching staff feels like he has the ability to step into that third point guard role and if we were to need or take an injury, we feel comfortable he could come in and give us minutes,” Morey said.

Jonathan Feigen of the Chronicle contributed to this report.

good luck the rest of the year! Appreciate the opportunity and the support #RedNation — Aaron Brooks (@Thirty2zero) February 21, 2014