The Houston Rockets face a crucial offseason decision when it comes to Fred VanVleet this summer. The veteran has a $44.8 million team option for the 2025-26 season, and the path forward is complicated. However, if the Rockets are serious about keeping VanVleet around long-term, it's becoming crystal clear what Houston's best option is going to be to: They have to decline the option and work out a long-term extension that lowers his yearly salary.
As we know, Fred was added to the Rockets' core [because of his stabilizing veteran presence](https://spacecityscoop.com/veteran-makes-future-plans-rockets-crystal-clear). Getting a guy like him around your impressionable young talent is always going to be a good move. FVV has served as a tone-setter both in the locker room and on the court, and he's paved the way for more success for guys like Jalen Green, Jabari Smith and others.
His impact both on and off the court has been considerable, but the $44.8 million price tag that comes with his services for next season is simply not going to be something that's sustainable for this team. Houston needs roster flexibility with other guys becoming eligible for extensions soon as well.
The Rockets must decline VanVleet's option for next season
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There's no question [that the Rockets do want to keep VanVleet](https://spacecityscoop.com/fred-vanvleet-continues-houston-rockets-leader-according-rumors) in their locker room. The way his coaches and teammates have spoken about him makes that very clear. He fits like a glove when you talk about Ime Udoka's style of play and what he envisions this team becoming.
However, if Houston went ahead and accepted his option for next season, they would put themselves in a difficult position when it comes to pursuing outside upgrades or working on the aforementioned extensions for the young pieces already in place. While they would be doing Fred a favor, they wouldn't be doing the entire team a favor.
Instead, re-negotiating their point guard's deal and finding a new contract in the range of a $20 to $25 million annual payday would be a much better situation for the Rockets. This would be a more appropriate dollar amount given his level of production at this stage of his career, and it would give the front office more freedom going forward as well.
Making this type of move to re-structure Fred VanVleet's contract is anything but unusual. We see teams around the league do this kind of thing all the time, and it rarely ends up being the wrong long-term play. Both accepting the option and letting him walk would be missteps, but getting FVV back at a discount would be a fantastic step forward for the Houston Rockets.