The Rockets went all-in on Chris Paul last June, trading nearly half their roster for the star point guard, and the acquisition paid dividends throughout the 2017/18 season — led by Paul and MVP favorite James Harden, Houston won an NBA-best 65 games. However, CP3’s old injury issues resurfaced at the worst possible time, sidelining him for the last two games of the Rockets’ season as the team failed to hang onto a 3-2 lead over Golden State in the Western Conference Finals. And with Paul and Clint Capela up for new deals, Houston’s roster could get awfully expensive this summer.
Here’s where things currently stand for the Rockets financially, as we continue our Offseason Salary Cap Digest series for 2018:
Guaranteed Salary
- James Harden ($30,421,854)
- Ryan Anderson ($20,421,546)
- Eric Gordon ($13,500,375)
- P.J. Tucker ($7,969,537)
- Nene ($3,651,480)
- Chinanu Onuaku ($1,544,951)
- Troy Williams ($122,741) — Waived via stretch provision
- Total: $77,632,484
Player Options
- None
Team Options
- Aaron Jackson ($1,378,242)
- Total: $1,378,242
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Zhou Qi ($1,378,242)
- Total: $1,378,242
Restricted Free Agents
- Clint Capela ($4,749,591 qualifying offer / $7,003,584 cap hold): Bird rights
- Total: $7,003,584
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- Chris Paul ($35,350,000)1: Bird rights
- Trevor Ariza ($14,099,732): Bird rights
- Tarik Black ($3,948,000): Non-Bird rights
- Gerald Green ($1,499,698): Non-Bird rights
- Joe Johnson ($1,499,698): Non-Bird rights
- Luc Mbah a Moute ($1,499,698): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $57,896,826
Projected Salary Cap: $101,000,000
Projected Cap Room: None
- We’re assuming that the Rockets will keep cap holds for Paul and Capela on their books in an effort to re-sign both players. In that scenario, the team would remain well over the cap.
- In the extremely unlikely event that Houston wants to clear space by parting with those two players and the rest of their free agents, the Rockets could get up to about $18.38MM in cap room without trading or cutting any guaranteed contracts.
Footnotes:
- Based on CBA rules, Paul’s cap hold should be $36,899,243. However, his cap hold can’t exceed his maximum salary, which currently projects to be $35,350,000.
Note: Rookie scale cap holds are estimates based on salary cap projections and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Anderson, nene, Gordon, nanu and Jackson all combine for 40+mil in space…. i’d trade these players for lebron♂️
Throw in neener, neener and nonose and you got a deal.
Doubt the rockets could pull that off without a boatload of picks as well, which the rockets don’t really have.
Who would take them???
LeBron will be a FA. The only way that would work is if LeBron wanted to sign w/HOU and the Cavs wanted those contracts back in return, then MAYBE they’d entertain a S&T.
Basically all the garbage of Houston that no one wants for the GOAT. That seems like the worst trade ever. You must be a Rocket fan.
Yup! I’m a Rocket fan Bron is gone next year. Cleveland will rebuild. Gordon is better than Hood. Anderson can back up Nance (lol), nene can back up Thompson… add in 1 or 2 draft picks. Trade love for Wiggins or another young prospect to add to their young core with the addition of picks would make them set for a rebuild.
Haha i think you might be blinded by your rockets fandom to see that probably would never happen. Houston would have to acquire better picks first, I doubt Minnesota would accept love for Wiggins, and getting expensive players as backups is no good
Of course there leaving out the next two years of drafts picks
Can’t trade back to back years of picks