Judging from some operations of the Houston Rockets during this period, the team's reconstruction period may be shorter than we imagined. Generally speaking, some successfully rebuilt teams need at least 5-6 years to turn from weak to strong, such as the Suns, Celtics, Heat, 76ers and other teams. This routine may be ineffective if put on the shrewd Rocket Team .
Let's take a look at some of the Rockets' magical operations in the past two seasons. The Rockets first traded Harden to the Nets, and cleared out all the players who were exchanged for "immediate combat effectiveness". There are multiple first-round picks and first-round swap rights left. In other words, in the next few years, the Rockets will be able to cope with the draft just by relying on the first-round pick acquired from the Nets. Almost every summer, talented rookies will become a member of the Rockets.
Furthermore, the Rockets' salary space clearing task is almost completed. Wood has been sent to the Mavericks by the Rockets, Wall has also been bought out by the Rockets. If Gordon 's contract is cleared this summer or in the new season, wait for Tate, Nuwaba After the contracts of , Chris , Marjanovic, Brown, and other players expire, the Rockets will be able to free up almost US$70 million in salary space by next summer.
Even this summer, after the Rockets bought out Wall, their salary space is very abundant. According to statistics, the Rockets' current total salary is about 30 million U.S. dollars away from the luxury tax trigger line. In other words, if the Rockets fancy any free agent or even a star player, they can use this salary space to make a fuss. . Let’s look at the salary situation of the Rockets players. After Wood and Wall left, Gordon is the only one left in the Rockets with an annual salary of more than 10 million.
Gordon's annual salary last season was only US$16.86 million. Although it will increase in the new season, for the Rockets, such a contract is already very valuable. In addition to Gordon, the Rockets are filled with a large amount of basic salary (such as Nuwaba, Tate, Brown, Chris, etc.), as well as rookie contracts. Among them, there are as many as 7 or 8 rookie contracts. Whether it is Smith, Jaylen Green , or even Porter's contract is in the rookie period, this is commonly known as the "rookie bonus."
The Rockets' lineup no longer looks weak, but their total salary is not high. This is all thanks to the "rookie bonus." The Rockets enjoy all the "rookie bonuses" and will not consider renewing these rookies until 2-3 years later. In other words, in the next 2-3 seasons, the Rockets can still use this low price. contracts, allowing these talented new stars to play for the Rockets.
In addition, the Rockets have a "hidden advantage", which is the age of the players. After Wood and Wall left, the Rockets have almost become a team with a core lineup of rookies + quasi-rookies. Although it seems that the Rockets are not strong at the moment, don't forget that the difference between newcomers and veterans is that every time a veteran plays A season's performance will decline as age increases, but what about rookies? With each passing year, their strength and experience will automatically increase, in theory.
Compared with those teams with veterans, the Rockets become more powerful every year, have more young players and salary space, and are more likely to attract big-name free agents. The Rockets' advantage in average age is also the key to helping the team win championships in the future.
As long as the Rockets can introduce star players to strengthen the lineup in the next 2-3 years, it is no exaggeration to say that the Rockets will be the next Celtics in 2-3 years—— Because the Green Army came through this way back then. They broke out last season and soared into the finals. Their today is the Rockets' tomorrow.
