Houston Rockets Hope to Lure Carmelo Anthony, Re-Sign Parsons
Free agency started Tuesday in the NBA with many marquee names grabbing the headlines including LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Pau Gasol.
The Southwest division Houston Rockets are said to be interested in both James and Anthony. However, the Rockets have a free agent closer to home they also need to sign.
The Rockets allowed forward Chandler Parsons to become a restricted free agent this year and that was seen by many as a slick move by Houston to allow them to better control what was taking place. However, that move might just cost them in the long run.
Parsons is believed to have a number of teams interested in his services, including the Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves and Dallas Mavericks.
The market for Parsons will depend a great deal, on what transpires with Anthony.
Those teams that are expected to be suitors for Anthony will push to sign Parsons if their pursuit fails for the Knicks shooting forward, as they will not want to walk away from the free agent season empty handed.
Since Parsons is just a restricted free agent, team’s interest in him will be dictated by what is out there in the market for unrestricted free agents.
A restricted free agent often either receives a large contract that is more than their worth early in the free agent period or sit and watch what takes place with unrestricted free agents and signs near the end.
Houston will be able to match any offer Parsons signs with another NBA team. It is largely expected that the Rockets will want to sign Parsons. Part of the Houston plan for not picking up his option for 2014-15 was to keep him as well as sign another top star to long-term contracts.
Houston wants to clear roo
m under the salary cap to make room for a high-profile star to play with their talented pair of superstars Dwight Howard and James Harden.
Their plan commenced last week when they traded Omer Asik to New Orleans. At the same time, the Rockets might need to move the contract of Jeremy Lin to make room for a top star.
If Houston signs a veteran free agent they can then exceed the salary cap to match any offer sheet Parsons signs, provided the two moves were to happen in the order the Rockets need.
Parsons has been a bargain thus far for Houston and might not be that enthusiastic to help the Rockets management. He scored 16.6 points, grabbed 5.5 rebounds, handed out 4 assists per game last season, and is one of the best small forwards on offense in the game.
The Rockets shooting forward likely will have a number of offers to choose from and Rockets management should have enough time negotiate a deal with a top NBA star.
However, if Parson signs a large offer sheet early in July, then the clock will start ticking for Houston as they attempt to sign a superstar to top dollar before having to match an offer sheet for Parsons.
It seems even in the offseason, the clock keeps ticking for players and management alike.
