Fred VanVleet, Rockets
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Fred VanVleet of the Houston Rockets could be traded for a star this summer.
The Houston Rockets could benefit from the Boston Celtics‘ financial and injury dilemma.
Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’ Connor suggested a trade that packages the Rockets’ No. 10 pick and Fred VanVleet along with additional draft capital to pursue Celtics star and former NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown.
“If a team misses out on Giannis [Antetokounmpo], could they pivot to Jaylen Brown and could that team be the Houston Rockets?” O’Connor wondered on the latest episode of his podcast “The Kevin O’Connor Show”. “Could you see Ime Udoka, the head coach of Houston, reunite with Jaylen Brown with some type of offer like Fred VanVleet, the No. 10 pick this year and some number of future first-round picks?
“Van Vleet has a team option that can be declined if this deal were to happen before July 1st. The Celtics could cleanly get under the second apron by declining that option. It would give them immense flexibility, tons of future draft capital.”
Jaylen Brown as Rockets New Go-to-Guy?
The Celtics are staring at a financial crunch with their $500 million payroll and the roster-building restrictions of the dreaded second apron. Compounding their dilemma is Jayson Tatum‘s Achilles injury, which will keep him out for next season.
Brown, locked in a five-year, $304 million deal, currently holds the best value among the Celtics holdovers from their 2024 championship roster.
The 29-year-old forward is a two-way star who fits the Rockets’ culture under Udoka. Brown averaged 22.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.2 steals this past season. He was the Celtics’ primary defender on Luka Doncic when they won their 18th championship last year.
Brown beat Tatum for both the Eastern Conference Finals and NBA Finals MVP awards.
Fred VanVleet Agreed to Push Back Contract Decision
The Rockets and VanVleet agreed to push back the deadline on the point guard’s $44.9 million team option to June 29, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported.
The move buys the Rockets more time to weigh their options and increased VanVleet’s chances to get that salary guaranteed. Houston can also use VanVleet as a salary ballast in a star trade if someone becomes available ahead of the deadline.
VanVleet is open to staying and signing a much cheaper long-term deal if the Rockets decline his $44.9 million option.
“Obviously, I put my heart and soul into this and this is where I want to be,” VanVleet told reporters following the Rockets’ first-round loss to the Golden State Warriors. “It’s definitely a family situation. I’ve got a lot of love for our coaching staff and (general manager) Rafael (Stone) and the Fertitta family and just what we set out to do when I had my free agent meeting two years ago and we’re on that track. It was never a short-term vision — it was a long-term goal. We’re on track, we’re on schedule.”
The 31-year-old point guard finished his second season in Houston, averaging 14.1 points, 5.6 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals. He raised his level of play in the playoffs, proving his real value to a young Rockets team.
VanVleet averaged 18.7 points on 43.5% 3-point shooting against the Warriors in the postseason. His big performances in Game 5 (26 points on 61.5% shooting) and Game 6 (29 points, 8 assists) lifted the Rockets to force a Game 7 after facing a 3-1 series deficit.