collects more young players to accumulate talents to facilitate reconstruction completion. This has always been the strategy of Rockets . Now we can say that Rockets General Manager Stone's reconstruction strategy has achieved initial success. In two years, the Rockets not only have 7 potential new players, but also have powerful new players such as Tate, Martin Jr., Matthews Jr., Porter Jr. It seems that the Rockets have achieved success on the road to collecting talents, but these players need time to make themselves better.
Now Jaylen Green and Jabary Smith both newcomers have the possibility of becoming all-star players in the future. Jaylen Green, especially, performed very well in the preseason when his second season was about to begin. The game against Heat easily scored 25 points, and in the game against Pacers , he easily scored 33 points. The scoring is as simple as eating for Jaylen Green .
In addition to cultivating newcomers, the Rockets' plan actually has a "dark line", which is to use a large amount of salary space to chase superstars. After all, it is not easy to reliably train new players to rise like the Warriors back then. There are not many teams in the entire league that have done this and succeeded. The Rockets are now preparing for both - in addition to cultivating rookies, they can also use their salary space to sign superstars, and then implement the "newcomer + superstar" plan, making the Rockets instantly one of the strongest teams in the league.
Check out the Rockets' series of operations now. According to statistics, the Rockets' current "dead money" has reached an astonishing $62.2 million, which is not only the highest in the league in the new season, but also the highest "dead money" value in the league since the Knicks' in the 18-19 season. The so-called dead money refers to the salary that players who are bought out or cut must pay and cannot trade.
For example, after the Rockets bought out , Wall a few months ago, they paid Wall a salary of $40.87 million in the last year. Although Wall is no longer a member of the Rockets, the Rockets still have to pay him a salary of $40.87 million in the last year until the contract ends. This money is called "dead money".
According to statistics, including the contracts of players such as Wall, Feworth , Harkless, Jerome, etc., the Rockets' dead money for the new season is as high as $62.2 million. But the good news is that these players' contracts will basically expire next summer, which also means that the Rockets can free up at least $60 million in salary space. Including players such as Gordon , which has a non-guaranteed contract next summer, Mariananovic, which has an expiration contract, and Matthews, which has a non-guaranteed contract, the Rockets will be able to clear about $75 million in salary space next summer!
75 million, even if the Rockets sign two superstars in one go, it is not a problem. Unfortunately, no super giant will become a free agent next summer, so the Rockets might as well endure it for another year, and while training new players, they will choose a high-ranking rookie, and use the next season to run in for a year. By the summer of 2024, the Rockets will not only have more salary space, but also new players such as Green and Smith have become more mature. By then, the Rockets' "newcomer + superstar" plan will be implemented smoothly.
The current "depression" is for the sake of the future of excitement. I believe that the Rockets players, coaching staff and management understand the truth.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-