Tag: Rafael Stone

As summer league continues, should Rockets keep playing Reed Sheppard and Cam Whitmore?

As 2024 summer league continues, the Rockets will need to decide whether it’s worth it to continue playing Reed Sheppard and Cam Whitmore.

Having never been a general manager or head coach of an NBA franchise, my opinion doesn’t carry much weight regarding the decisions made by the Houston Rockets during summer-league play.

Yet, if I did have the chance to talk to Rafael Stone or Ime Udoka, I would offer them advice about the playing time of rookie guard Reed Sheppard and second-year player Cam Whitmore heading into Thursday’s matchup versus the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“Shut them down,” I would say as loud as I could. It could be a similar template to 2023, when talented second-year prospects Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason played the first two games at summer league before watching the remaining games from the sidelines.

In 2024, even though the Rockets (2-1) are still in contention to make the summer-league playoffs and perhaps return to the championship game, Sheppard and Whitmore have already proven to have chemistry together. That was one of the main reasons they were paired together in Las Vegas, as they have the potential to play together on Houston’s bench unit during the 2024-25 season.

The two did not perform at their best in Monday’s 87-73 loss to the Detroit Pistons, when they combined to shoot 7-for-32 from the field and 0-for-7 from 3-point range. Some of their play could have been due to the fatigue of playing back-to-back games, but they have displayed enough in the three games played for Stone and Udoka to get a sense of how to plan the rotation heading into training camp.

Some might say that Sheppard, the No. 3 overall selection in the 2024 NBA draft, could benefit from getting more reps against NBA competition. But, why take the chance of Sheppard getting injured (remember, Amen Thompson sprained his ankle in summer league a year ago) when his 3-point shooting and high basketball IQ could be valuable to the Rockets during the upcoming regular season?

In his lone collegiate season at Kentucky, Sheppard led the nation in 3-point shooting percentage (52.1%) on his way to being named the 2023-24 National Association of Basketball Coaches National Freshman of the Year. It’s a skill that could be useful to the Rockets, who were among the NBA’s 10 worst teams in 3-point accuracy last season, and that might prompt them to be cautious at summer league.

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Rafael Stone: Rockets have no interest in trading Alperen Sengun

“Alpi’s gonna be with us next year,” Rockets GM Rafael Stone says of Alperen Sengun (via SiriusXM NBA Radio). “We have no interest in moving him.”

After a 2023-24 season that drew All-Star consideration and ended with a third-place finish in the NBA’s Most Improved Player race, Alperen Sengun is a rising star with the Houston Rockets.

Yet, while he’s eligible for a contract extension this offseason, Sengun has yet to receive one. There are compelling financial reasons for Houston to consider waiting until 2025 to finalize Sengun’s second contract, but that hasn’t stopped some observers from wondering if the Turkish big man might be available by trade.

Per Marc Berman of the New York Post, any list of potential suitors likely includes the Knicks. The problem, of course, is that Houston has zero motivation to trade its emerging 21-year-old star.

Even so, given the enormous reach of New York media outlets, speculation has swirled among fans in recent days. Fortunately, on Sunday, Rockets general manager went on the NBA’s Sirius XM radio channel and directly refuted any notion of trading Sengun.

“Alpi’s gonna be with us next year,” Stone told the hosts when asked about the recent wave of reporting. “We get calls on all our young guys. We have no interest in moving him.”

Stone’s latest Sengun commentary was first relayed by Bryce Gelman, a producer for Sirius XM NBA Radio.

Sengun averaged a team-high 21.1 points (53.7% FG), 9.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.2 steals in 32.5 minutes per game last season.

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Nets GM confirms that Mikal Bridges trade was tied to Rockets’ draft deal

Mikal Bridges being traded to the Knicks was directly connected to the Rockets-Nets draft deal, as confirmed by Brooklyn GM Sean Marks.

With an emphasis on pick quantity, quality, and a more diversified portfolio stretching out in further years, the Houston Rockets recently traded a pair of draft assets from the Nets (2025, 2026) back to Brooklyn for four future first-round picks and swaps from the Phoenix Suns (2025, 2027, and 2029) and Dallas Mavericks (2029).

Thanks to that trade, Brooklyn now controls its first-round draft capital in 2025 and 2026. Combine that with the recent trade of Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks, and many NBA observers expect the Nets to be among the league’s worst teams in the upcoming 2024-25 season — and thus, in the running for a high draft pick and the chance to select an elite 2025 prospect, such as Cooper Flagg.

It all leads to a reasonable question: Could Rockets general manager Rafael Stone have stayed the course with his previous draft portfolio while potentially adding another top prospect (such as Flagg) to an improving team in Houston (41-41)?

The answer, most likely, is no. Now that all trades are official, Nets general manager Sean Marks commented on the thought process. Here’s what Marks said, via James Herbert of CBS Sports:

They’re absolutely connected. I think when you look at doing the deal we did with the Knicks, that was really only possible by controlling our own destiny a little bit more… where we get our picks back from Houston.

Translated, had the Rockets stayed the course, the Nets would have kept Bridges and likely been a respectable team. Brooklyn went 32-50 last season, which was only the ninth-worst NBA record, and they had the non-taxpayer mid-level exception — offering a starting annual salary near $13 million — to further add to the roster.

It’s still unlikely that the Nets would have been a playoff team, in that scenario, but it’s probable that their pre-lottery odds slot would have been toward the back half of the order (as opposed to the top). Granted, it would still be possible for the Rockets to move up, but the draft odds would not be nearly as favorable as the current scenario in which the Nets do not have Bridges and are fully rebuilding.

Thus, with peak upside limited, that’s what led the Rockets to prioritize an additional quantity of picks that go out in further years. From there, Brooklyn and Houston found an agreeable structure to best suit the preferred timeline of both teams, and the rest is history.

As for 2025, given the strength of the Western Conference and Kevin Durant’s ongoing injury history, it’s not implausible that the current first-round swap right that Houston owns with the Suns could be comparable in value to the previous swap with the Nets (with Bridges, which would have been the case had Houston stood pat).

So, as it pertains to Flagg, the chances are likely reduced but not completely implausible. Fans in Houston will simply need to cheer for the downfall of Phoenix, now, as opposed to Brooklyn.

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Report: Rockets unlikely to offer max contracts in 2024 to Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun

Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun are unlikely to receive maximum-salary contract extension offers in 2024, the Houston Chronicle reports.

As first-round picks from the 2021 NBA draft, Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun are set to enter the fourth and final seasons of their initial rookie-scale contracts with the Houston Rockets.

Both have improved while flashing moments of brilliance, and Sengun drew All-Star consideration earlier this year. On paper, there is a case to be made to consider a contract extension for both players, which could keep them formally under club control for years to come.

Yet, there are likely to be at least some limits as to any potential extension offers in 2024. On Friday, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle said that Houston is unlikely to offer a maximum-contract extension to either Green or Sengun during the 2024 offseason.

Feigen writes:

The extensions for Green and Şengün would be worth as much as $225 million over five seasons, though the Rockets are unlikely to offer the maximum to either player this offseason. Without agreements on extensions, players become restricted free agents after their fourth seasons.

For general manager Rafael Stone, much of the situation comes down to math. If the Rockets let Sengun and Green play out the final year of their current deals, they would hit restricted free agency in 2025, which — beyond standard negotiating rights — gives Houston the right to match any outside offer and retain each player.

To make both restricted free agents, the Rockets would have to put a “cap hold” on their initial 2024-25 salary books. That figure is determined relative to each player’s original contract and draft slot.

For Green, the No. 2 overall selection in 2021, his cap hold is projected at a starting annual salary of $31.2 million for the 2024-25 season. For Sengun, the No. 16 pick, it’s $16.3 million.

In that 2025 offseason, the Rockets could have significant financial flexibility should they not pick up the team option on the final year of Fred VanVleet’s contract. Yet, if the Rockets were to give Sengun or Green an extension in 2024, that player’s cap figure for the 2025 offseason would change from the aforementioned hold amount to the starting salary of the new contract.

Both figures are below the NBA’s maximum-salary contract — and well below it, in the case of Sengun. So, if the Rockets plan to give either player the maximum deal or anything close to it, it benefits their 2025 cap flexibility to wait until that offseason. For the players involved, any new contract wouldn’t start until the 2025-26 season in either scenario, so there’s not significant harm from waiting.

If either Sengun or Green is open to a new contract with a starting annual salary at or below those projected cap-hold figures — or below what the team feels they may potentially command in free agency — there could be a mutually beneficial scenario to extend in 2024.

The player would get the benefit of added financial security from signing that contract a year early, and the team would protect itself from the risk of potentially paying more money — should that player’s performance in 2024-25 make them worthy of a larger deal.

But if the player is set on a higher figure, as is his prerogative, there’s only downside to the team in doing a 2024 deal. The Rockets could offer the same contract in a year, with an identical starting date, yet with a lower salary figure on their initial 2025 books.

By waiting until 2025, the team is also more protected in the event of a major injury or disappointing season that might unexpectedly lower the player’s future value, relative to what is known now.

So, the question for 2024 is whether either player is open to a compromise scenario where both sides benefit. Time will tell.

Regardless of how any 2024 contract talks end up, it’s largely a matter of timing. When asked in April, Stone was adamant the Rockets have the financial backing to keep all of their core six of young players (Green, Sengun, Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, Cam Whitmore, and Amen Thompson) beyond their initial NBA deals.

“We do,” Stone said earlier this offseason.

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Report: Rockets monitoring Donovan Mitchell, Devin Booker, Zion Williamson for future trades

Unlike Kevin Durant and James Harden, Houston would have trade interest in Donovan Mitchell, Devin Booker, and Zion Williamson. However, none are currently available.

Despite his interest in returning to Houston, a 34-year-old James Harden was deemed too old in the 2023 offseason to fit with the young core of the rebuilding Rockets. The same holds true with Kevin Durant in 2024, despite some recent reports to the contrary.

However, if the player was closer to age alignment with Houston’s young core, general manager Rafael Stone would love to add a proven All-Star to help mold his team into an eventual title contender.

So, who might that player be? None are believed to be available in the 2024 offseason, but Sam Amick and Anthony Slater of The Athletic dropped three names who could fit. They write:

So, who are the Rockets interested in as franchise centerpiece material? League sources say that Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell (who is 27 and widely expected to sign an extension with the Cavs soon), the Suns’ Devin Booker (also 27), and New Orleans’ Zion Williamson (23) would all fit the bill. The only problem, of course, is that none of them are expected to be available anytime soon.

With Booker specifically, it could help the cause that Houston now owns several future first-round draft assets from Phoenix.

But in 2024, the Suns are still trying to compete with a veteran-laden core. Thus, the time for Stone and the Rockets to have a talk with Phoenix about Booker and those picks is likely at least a year away.

In the meantime, the Rockets will continue allowing their young core to grow, all while gaining more information on those younger players. Then, in 2025 and beyond, all sides can re-evaluate.

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Rafael Stone, Rockets viewed Reed Sheppard as 2024 draft’s best player

“At the end of our process, we ended up with Reed as the best player in the draft by quite a bit,” Rockets GM Rafael Stone says of Reed Sheppard.

Heading into the 2024 NBA draft, the Houston Rockets had their eyes set on one player with the No. 3 overall selection in Wednesday’s first round. As fate would have it, University of Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard was still available when Houston was on the clock.

“I think there are a lot of guys who can and will have really productive NBA careers,” Rockets general manager Rafael Stone said after the first round. “But in this case, at the end of our process, we ended up with Reed as the best player in the draft by quite a bit.”

“He was the only guy we were really focused on, so if he had not gotten to us, I think we would have traded down or out of the draft. But when we had the opportunity to draft him, we jumped on it.”

When Stone was asked why he felt Sheppard was the best prospect in the draft, he immediately mentioned his shooting ability as a primary reason. Last season, Houston ranked 23rd in the NBA in 3-point shooting, finishing at 35.2% as a team.

“He has a special set of skills,” Stone said of Sheppard, who shot 52.1% on 3-pointers in his lone collegiate season at Kentucky. “His shooting was historically great. His feel for the game, his passing, his ability to get deflections, and he is an NBA athlete. The IQ and feel are very real. There is just a lot to like.”

Sheppard, 20, appeared in 33 games at Kentucky and averaged 12.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.5 assists. His 52.1% clip from 3-point range was a key factor in him being awarded Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year and earning second-team All-SEC honors.

While with the Wildcats, Sheppard was named National Freshman of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association. He earned All-America Honorable Mention from the Associated Press.

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Rafael Stone reacts to Rockets-Nets trade, Reed Sheppard draft choice

In a virtual press conference, GM Rafael Stone shared his perspective on the recent Rockets-Nets trade and Houston’s top draft selection of Reed Sheppard.

HOUSTON — In a virtual press conference outside the Toyota Center war room, Rockets general manager Rafael Stone shared his perspective on Houston’s recent trade with the Brooklyn Nets and its top 2024 draft selection of Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard.

Sheppard, a 6-foot-2 guard, shot over 52% on 3-pointers in his lone collegiate season with the Wildcats. He was drafted by Houston at No. 3 overall in Wednesday’s first round, which took place at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.

Meanwhile, in a trade with the host Nets the previous night, Houston acquired four future first-round draft assets from the Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks (via Brooklyn) in exchange for a pair of first-round assets in 2025 and 2026.

As part of Wednesday night’s press conference, Stone shared his perspective on the implications of both of those moves and beyond.

Stone and the Rockets also have a pick coming up (at No. 44 overall) in Thursday’s second round of the 2024 NBA draft, which starts at 3:00 p.m. Central. It will be televised on ESPN.

Report: Rockets to save 2024 mid-level exception for future trade

The Rockets plan to save their non-taxpayer mid-level exception for potential use in a future trade, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.

In contrast to 2023, when the Rockets used their significant space beneath the NBA’s salary cap to sign veterans like Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks, Houston will operate above the cap in 2024.

But that doesn’t mean general manager Rafael Stone is in a bad spot, when it comes to potential upgrades to the roster. Trades are always possible, and the Rockets also have a number of salary cap exceptions to use for outright signings. Because Houston remains well below the NBA’s luxury tax line, there are no penalties for using them.

However, in a rule change under the NBA’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), exceptions can now be used to acquire players via a trade or waiver claim, as well. Outright free agency signings remain the most common use, but they are no longer the only use.

In the case of the Rockets, who already have a full playing rotation under contract along with the No. 3 overall draft pick in the 2024 first round, there isn’t an immediate need for another mid-tier role player.

With that in mind, it appears Stone and the Rockets will likely save the biggest exception at their disposal — the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, which offers a starting salary at near $13 million annually for up to four years — for use in potential trades down the line. That could make the bi-annual exception, which offers a $4.7-million annual salary for up to two years, Houston’s initial spending tool.

Jonathan Feigen, beat writer for the Houston Chronicle, explains:

With their rotation returning intact, the Rockets are likely to hold onto their mid-level exception in case it could be used in trades, rather than in free agency. In a rule change, teams may use the non-taxpayer, room mid-level, or bi-annual exceptions in trades or to acquire a player on waivers.

Given the lack of playing time available in their rotation for a free agent addition they could add with a $12.9 million salary, they are much more likely to keep that exception available for a trade.

A larger trade for a headliner that more dramatically alters the Rockets rotation could potentially create openings that would make the mid-level exception more beneficial then than it would be next month when the roster and rotation are so full.

Among Houston’s rotation players from last season, only reserve guard Aaron Holiday will be a free agent, and Tari Eason and Steven Adams are each expected back from injury.

Feigen writes that Jock Landale, Jeff Green, and Jae’Sean Tate are all likely to have the 2024-25 team options on their contracts picked up, which would fill out the projected roster for the time being.

The majority of team-option decisions are due by Saturday, June 29.

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ESPN: Since 2019, Rockets lead NBA in outperforming draft slots

Since 2019, the Rockets have received “almost double the expected value of their draft picks,” per ESPN’s Kevin Pelton.

Led by the likes of Alperen Sengun (No. 16 overall pick in 2021), Tari Eason (No. 17 in 2022), and Cam Whitmore (No. 20 in 2023), the Houston Rockets have found a surprising amount of production in recent years from picks made in the second half of the first round.

Now, according to statistical models from ESPN’s Kevin Pelton, there’s an ability to quantify just how much.

Pelton writes:

Over the past five drafts (2019 to 2023), the three teams that have added the most value on a per-pick basis relative to what we would expect based on where they picked all have ties to the Houston Rockets’ front office. Along with Houston, that group includes the Philadelphia 76ers, who hired longtime Rockets executive Daryl Morey in 2020, and the Sacramento Kings, who hired Monte McNair from Houston in 2020 as their lead executive. Those teams rank just ahead of the Golden State Warriors and Utah Jazz.

Although Morey oversaw only one of those drafts, the Rockets themselves are far and away No. 1 by this measure, getting almost double the expected value of their picks. Houston picked the two players who most exceeded the expectations for their draft spot, Alperen Sengun at No. 16 in 2021, and Cam Whitmore at No. 20 last year.

It’s a strong endorsement for Houston’s current front office, led by general manager Rafael Stone and assistant general manager Eli Witus. Yet, it’s worth noting that Houston doesn’t currently have a pick in the middle-to-late portions of the 2024 first round, which is the area the Rockets have most frequently outperformed from.

So, for the Rockets to keep that streak going, the path will be a bit more challenging with only the No. 3 overall selection.

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Podcast: Previewing 2024 NBA draft week and free agency for the Rockets

Our Ben DuBose joined Fox 26 Houston’s Will Kunkel for a Rockets-themed preview of the NBA’s upcoming draft and 2024 free agency window.

With the first round of the 2024 NBA draft on June 26 and the start of free agency negotiations on June 30, it’s set to be a busy two weeks for general manager Rafael Stone of the Houston Rockets.

So, to break it all down, our Ben DuBose joined Will Kunkel, sports director of Fox 26 Houston, for an in-studio interview. In a Rockets-themed episode of “Kickin’ it with Kunkel,” the discussion starts with a look at draft candidates at No. 3 overall, headlined by Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard and Connecticut center Donovan Clingan.

The show also explores several other topics, including the difficulty of executing a trade involving the No. 3 pick; extension considerations for Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun; prioritizing Houston’s top prospects, based on current production; and the value of head coach Ime Udoka to the young core and to players around the league.

The complete episode can be viewed below.

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