Ready for Lift Off?

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        The Houston Rockets have had a few tough seasons lately. Finishing at the bottom of the standings and gambling for ping pong balls. This offseason the Rockets are looking to take the next step with this young core. This past season the Rockets finished the season with a 22-60 record (14th in the Western Conference) which means they were looking at the NBA lottery. Houston landed the 4th overall pick in this years NBA Draft and with the pick they took young talented Guard Amen Thompson from Overtime Elite. The Rockets had a lot of work to do and a lot of cap space and took advantage of it in Free Agency. 




        Free Agency came and the Rockets made sure to spend that money on some solid veteran players to help the young guys grow their game, guide them and win games. They started big by signing Guard Fred VanVleet to a 3-year, $128 Million max contract, final year is a club-option. VanVleet was recently on the All-Star team in 2022 and played a major role in helping the Raptors get their first championship in franchise history in 2019. The Rockets didn't finish there as they went and acquired Guard/Forward Dillon Brooks via. sign-&-trade. Dillon Brooks has made himself known last season as one of the biggest villains in the league and poking bears. Brooks made NBA All-Defense this past season, second-team. So while he did have a downward year on the offensive side he still made sure he did his job on defense. There were a lot of Shanghai Sharks memes regarding Dillon Brooks this Free Agency but he landed with the Rockets on a 4-year, $86 Million contract, which his fully guaranteed by the way. Brooks and VanVleet were the big names regarding the Rockets in Free Agency but the Rockets did not finish there. 






        The Rockets signed Forward/Center Jeff Green. Green spent this past season with the Denver Nuggets and helped them win their first championship in franchise history, this is Green's first NBA championship in his 16 year NBA career. This will be Green's second stint with the Rockets and will be a great veteran presence for the young guys as he has continues to have a long NBA career. Green and the Rockets agreed on a 2-year, $16 Million contract and the second year is a club-option. The Rockets also went out and signed Center Jock Landale. Landale spent this past season with the Phoenix Suns and could've been a Restricted Free Agent however the Suns decided to withdraw his qualifying offer therefore making him Unrestricted. Landale played in 69 games for the Suns and only averaged 14 minutes a game but has shown he can be a solid backup Center so Landale could have a bigger role in Houston compared to when he was in Phoenix. The Rockets and Landale agreed on a 4-year, $32 Million contract. Interesting to see that only the first year of his contract is fully guaranteed. The following 3 years are non-guaranteed and the final year of his deal is a club-option. Another signing the Rockets made that isn't getting much attention is Guard Aaron Holiday. Holiday spent this past season with the Atlanta Hawks where he played in 63 games and averaged 13 minutes a game. Holiday does add depth for the Rockets in the PG spot as he looks to be behind VanVleet and Kevin Porter Jr. Holiday has 5 years of NBA experience under his belt so he does add a veteran presence for the young team. Holiday and the Rockets agreed on a 1-year, $2.3 Million contract. Keep in mind Holiday's contract is partially-guaranteed. About $1 Million is guaranteed but the Rockets have until January 10th to decide if they will keep Holiday and guarantee the rest of his contract money or cut him. 




        While the Rockets did sign some solid veterans in Free Agency they also added a new voice to lead the team. The last time we saw Ime Udoka he was in a bit of a scandal where he had an inappropriate relationship with a Celtic female staffer. Ime Udoka was suspended for the entire 2022-23 season and later on fired from the Celtics. Before any of this happened, in the 2021-22 season, Ime Udoka helped the Celtics reach the NBA Finals for the first time in 12 years. On April 10th it was announced that the Rockets dismissed now former Head Coach Stephen Silas after three seasons and hired Ime Udoka this past summer. The Rockets clearly believe Udoka is the guy to help get this young core over the hump, start winning games and possibly make the playoffs. The Rockets definitely improved and are looking very competitive. 

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