After a heavy home loss to the Timberwolves, the Rockets' record improved to 17-16, ending their two-game winning streak and temporarily dropping to ninth place in the West. From the perspective of the Rockets, there is no shame in losing to the Timberwolves, who are the first in the West. However, it is also a wake-up call for the Rockets, who have played far beyond expectations this season, but when they play against the top teams, the Rockets' problems are exposed. Especially in terms of the inside and outside core, in the face of the Timberwolves, which had an excellent overall defense, the Rockets were very restricted, which made their offense unable to carry out smoothly, and the fiasco came as scheduled. 128 million in 3 years, goodbye rockets, the disadvantages are too serious, and your future in Houston is not clear.
Only by really competing with the top teams in the league can you see your own shortcomings, and for the Rockets, this regular season game is not an ordinary regular season. Facing the Timberwolves, the league's most efficient defense, the Rockets can use this battle to see what kind of strength they have. It's a pity that the Rockets ushered in a rout at home, and from the core, the Rockets were completely contained. This team, with Shen Jing on the inside and VanVleet on the outside, is facing the Timberwolves, who are defensive and integral, and they can't play their offense at all. However, compared to Shen Jing, who still got 19 points and 5 rebounds, Van Vliet's performance was very embarrassing.
In the face of the Timberwolves' twin tower combination and the defense of the forward group, although Shen Jing was very uncomfortable, he managed to score close to 20 points, on the other hand, VanVleet, his performance was simply disastrous. VanVleet only scored a measly 7 points on 2-of-9 shooting, and while he also dished out eight assists, it was clearly a drop in the bucket. When the Rockets need someone to step up and solve the problem, the obvious talent and ability can be seen that VanVleet is not that kind of material. On the contrary, it is Jalen Green, who has been criticized this season, who repeatedly made three-pointers and scored a team-high 20 points. And Van Vliet's play at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends obviously did not reach his value.
Not only was VanVleet's individual offensive efficiency poor, but his playmaking and field control skills were also questioned. A lot of times, when the Rockets needed stability, VanVleet not only couldn't organize any effective tactics, but he often shot outrageous three-pointers against defenders, which was inefficient. Meng Jin is "Van Jordan", but in reality, most of the time, Van Vliet is very inefficient. This season, VanVleet is averaging 17.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, 8.6 assists and 1.1 steals per game, which looks pretty good, right? But his shooting percentage is only 40.6%, hovering around 40%, and considering his annual salary of more than $40 million, such a performance will definitely not meet the value of his contract.
128 million for 3 years, this is the maximum salary contract signed by the Rockets with VanVleet in the offseason, and his contract amount can reach up to $130 million including bonuses. There are only 18 players in the league who have paid more than $40 million this season, but VanVleet is clearly one of the least worthy. Of course, his contract is not outright garbage, but it's obvious that his contract has a premium. However, Rockets fans are also well aware that VanVleet is just a re-entry into the competition for the Rockets, and he is not part of the team's future plans, which can be seen from the details of the contract between the Rockets and VanVleet.
First of all, Van Vliet's contract is only 3 years, unlike Dillon Brooks, who has an average salary of more than $20 million, but Dillon's contract is 4 years and is fully guaranteed. On the other hand, VanVleet has a three-year contract, the final year of which has a team option, to put it bluntly, fate is not in his own hands, but in the hands of the team, and the Rockets can refuse to exercise VanVleet's team option and let him become a free agent again at the end of next season. To put it simply, VanVleet was only offered a two-year contract with a maximum salary, and no team would use such a contract to establish the tactical core of the future.
Obviously, the Rockets know their own situation, their appeal in the market is limited, stars are not willing to come, or players with good value for money are not going to come to the Rockets. Just look at Big Lopez, the Rockets offered him a two-year, $54 million contract, and instead he accepted the Bucks' $48 million contract, if the Rockets' offer is not attractive enough, not aggressive enough, they may not get anything in the free agent market, only by constantly increasing the offer, the Rockets can sign stars, sign players who can change the team's situation, although they are not signing top players, but at least as a transition, the Rockets must do so.