Finally announced! The Rockets traded 5 for 4 with the Thunder to get 1 power center and 1 second-round pick. Team Rocket's latest deal! According to ESPN's Adrian Woganaroski, the Rockets have a blockbuster deal with their Western Conference rivals as follows:
1. The Rockets won: Derek Favors, Ty Jerome, Moh Hackers, Theo Maledon and the 2025 Second Round Draft Pick
2. Thunder Harvest: David Nwaba, Sterling Brown, Terry Burke and Max Chris
According to the "Wo Shen", the main purpose of the transaction between the two sides is to operate for the salary cap, on the one hand, the Thunder team obtained two transaction exceptions, and the total salary was more than 10 million yuan lower from the luxury tax. The Rockets, on the other hand, won a future second-round draft pick, while the total salary increased by 1 million. In addition, the Rockets got a strong substitute center Favors, but it is still possible to send him to another team.
It is understood that all players involved in the transaction have contracts that are about to expire, so this will not have much impact on the salary cap space of both sides. According to Rockets source Jackson Gatlin, the Thunder will also pay the Rockets $6.3 million in cash.
The Rockets traded Christian Wood to Dallas in June, bringing in Brown, Burke and Chris. These players are only for the purpose of trading pay matches, as the Rockets have no plans to leave them as part of the 15-man roster.
With three weeks to go before the official game begins, these players may not be able to make it to the regular season of 2022-23, as the NBA's offseason roster is limited to 20 players, while the regular season only allows each team to keep 15 standard contracts and two two-way contracts. As a result, Rockets general manager Rafael Stone is looking for a deal to swap out those who can't play before the lineup deadline to swap out more assets.
Of the four players he has earned from the Thunder, only Favors can be a backup center for the Rockets, and he seems likely to get some rotational playing time this season. The Rockets will evaluate some of the substitutes again in preseason to abandon those who don't perform well enough.
In this deal, in addition to the value of Favors, the biggest benefit the Rockets can get is some expired contracts and the Eagles' second-round draft pick (provided by the Thunder). After all, Favors' $10.2 million contract is expected to help the Rockets swap some solid assets before the 2022-23 deal deadline.
In addition, with the Rockets earning $20.9 million in player salaries in the deal, well above the Thunder's $13.5 million, the Thunder lowered potential luxury tax numbers, giving away future second-round draft picks and cash compensation for the Rockets. According to Bobby Max, an ESPN NBA front-office insider, the deal will be split into different parts given these gaps.
The Rockets actually achieved their goal of buying future draft picks through a trade with the Thunder, somewhat similar to the 2024 second-round draft picks they received from the Brooklyn Nets last season. According to Sports' Iko, the Rockets' newly acquired second-round 2025 draft pick (courtesy of the Hawks) will be protected by a 31-40 pick. If the Rockets don't end up with this draft pick, they'll get a second-round pick for 2026, possibly a second-round pick for the Lone Rangers, Thunder or 76ers.
Next, according to the statistics of last season, we will introduce the information of the players who have been traded.
David Nwaba, 6-foot-5" forward, 29, averaged 5.1 points per game (48.3 percent from the field, 30.6 percent from three-point range), 3.3 rebounds and 1.0 steals in 13.2 minutes
2. Trey Burke, a 29-year-old 6'0-inch guard, averages 5.1 points per game (39.1 percent from the field and 31.7 percent from three-point range) and assists 1.4 times in 10.5 minutes
3. Sterling Brown, 6-foot-6" guard, 27, averages 3.3 points per game (38.1 percent from the field and 30.4 percent from three-point range) and has 3.0 rebounds in 12.8 minutes
4. Max Chris, 6'9" forward, 25, averaged 4.5 points per game (46.3% from three-point range, 32.0%), 3.0 rebounds in 10.2 minutes
5. Derek Favors, 6'9" forward, 31, averages 5.3 points per game (51.6% final shooting percentage) and 4.7 rebounds in 16.7 minutes
6. Mo Hackers, 6'7" forward, 29, averaged 4.6 points per game (45.9 percent from the field and 30.7 percent from three-point range) and 2.4 rebounds in 18.4 minutes
7. Theo Malletden, 6'4" guard, 21, averages 7.1 points per game (37.5% end-of-range, 29.3% three-point shooting), 2.6 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 17.8 minutes
8. Ty Jerome, 6-foot-5" guard, 25, averages 7.1 points per game (37.8% shooting, 29.0% three-point shooting), 2.3 assists, 1.6 rebounds in 16.7 minutes
