With the NBA’s 2023 free agency period opening Friday, June 30, at 5 p.m. Central, that makes Thursday the last day for teams and players around the league to make decisions on player contracts that either have options for next season or a potential qualifying offer.
For Houston, the biggest decision involved fourth-year forward KJ Martin, who had a team option for 2023-24 at only $1.9 million. Picking up that option and keeping him on his existing deal carries the risk of allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent in 2024, but it maximizes Houston’s 2023 cap space due to that lower figure. Picking up the option also keeps him trade eligible this summer.
An athletic 22-year-old forward, Martin averaged 12.7 points (56.9% FG) and 5.5 rebounds in 28 minutes per game last season.
Had the Rockets declined that option, it would have made Martin a restricted free agent this summer while putting a larger “cap hold” on Houston’s offseason books, relative to his actual salary. That would slightly decrease Houston’s spending potential in 2023 free agency.
The upside to that scenario is that it might have boosted the odds of keeping Martin long-term, since — similar to Jae’Sean Tate one year ago — general manager Rafael Stone would be in a better long-term negotiating position if he could leverage paying Martin a year early and perhaps use that restricted status to scare away other suitors.
It’s also possible a longer-term deal might make Martin even more of a trade commodity though it would remove him from the trade market for six months due to signing a new contract.
Ultimately, the Rockets decided to pick up Martin’s option year, which keeps him on the books at a lower figure and maintains his eligibility to be traded this offseason. Read on for a look at all the details, along with other related option-deadline decisions made with players such as Daishen Nix, Darius Days, and Trevor Hudgins.