Hip hop artist Tupac Shakur released his fourth and final album during his lifetime titled “All Eyez on Me” back in February 1996. Shakur picked the title of the album based off of his perception of the way he felt society would view him after his recent release from prison.

It is safe to say that the Houston Rockets preseason game Tuesday versus the San Antonio Spurs will be more than just a tune up game for the Rockets and could be dubbed as “All Eyez on Me II” with the amount of on fans and sports media personalities around the world that will be tuned in.

Superstar shooting guard James Harden is set to make his 2020-21 NBA debut after a tumultuous offseason that included trade demands, the departure of guard Russell Westbrook via trade to the Washington Wizards for John Wall, and partying with rapper Lil’ Baby before the start of training camp that required him to test negative six times for COVID-19 before he was allowed to join the team.

New head coach Stephen Silas said he expected Harden to be on the court against the Spurs after having practiced on Monday with the team.

“We had a good conversation, and I’m just going to leave it at that,” said coach Silas when asked about the conversation he had with Harden. “He was locked in. He was asking good questions. He was bringing up good points.”

An open dialog will definitely be something the Rockets organization will want to keep with the 2019-20 NBA leading scorer as there were still national reports that Harden wants to be traded sometime during the season.

Speculation is that former Rockets general manager Daryl Morey who is currently president of basketball operations for the Philadelphia 76ers is still trying to make a strong trade package that would reunite him with Harden. But Philly is not willing to part with rising superstar Ben Simmons and the Rockets would not be interested in any package that does not involve him according to sources.

As of now, Harden is still with the Rockets and most are excited to see what he will look like in a new offensive system not designed around hoisting up a lot of three-pointers or having the tallest player on the court be 6’5. New teammates John Wall, Christian Wood, and Demarcus Cousins will bring a different type of dynamic and attitude that some believe will take Harden’s game to the next level if he stays with the team throughout the entire season.

Tipoff at Toyota Center is scheduled for 7:00pm CST.