$84 million for not being on the list! Rockets to play or to play? The race for the No. 1 pick is on the line
The Spurs are on a 14-game losing streak, the longest in franchise history, and have lost 19 of their last 20 games — don’t guess, at home to the Nets. Popovich heart secretly happy, “Ha ha, who else like me so shameless grab the No. 1 pick, Wen Bangyama will come to my bowl.”
At this time, next to the assistant coach took the record ranking, said disheartened: “Pops, we still lead the Rockets 0.5 wins, so down must still not ah.”
Popovich is tangled in the wind.
Of course, this is an apocryphal anecdote, but the reality is hilarious. The Rockets and Spurs have the worst records in the league, with the Rockets firmly at the bottom. “You don’t come, you come, I will jump” fearless, also can’t wait for someone to say “I was actually passing here.”
The Rockets have gone all out for the No. 1 pick this season, not even focusing on the court, but putting up billboards that read “professional help with team buyouts.” How crazy are they doing this? According to media statistics, the Rockets have spent a total of $84 million on player buyouts.
The approximate number of players bought out this season: John Wall: $47.5 million, Derrick Favors: $10 million, Danny Green: $10 million, Justin Holiday: $6 million, Maurice Harkless: $4.5 million, Ty Jerome: $4 million, and Teo Malledon: $2 million.
Interestingly, John Wall was traded back to the Rockets mid-season.
Why mention the buyout separately? On the one hand, the players who are bought out are not on the roster, which belongs to the situation of only paying salaries but not seeing people. How many Rockets can really play? The Rockets’ payroll, on the other hand, is about $137 million this season, most of it spent on player buyouts.
The problem for the Rockets this season is that they don’t have much to show for it. The Rockets’ goal of the season is, of course, to get the No. 1 draft pick by the luck of the goddess, but the “bad” season should also be fruitful. Recently many media criticized the Rockets, think this team is hopeless at all.
“I don’t want to follow suit, but the Houston Rockets are the biggest loser in the league,” the NBA University said on its social media account.
“Fans need to see some uplifting moment, like a Jabari Smith breakout, or something else that will have immediate results in the future — because rebuilding should at least offer hope, and the Rockets see little hope right now.”
The Rockets did have some high draft picks, but the overall performance wasn’t impressive.
