Houston Rockets: Most Underrated Move of the Off Season?

The Houston Rockets were having a very quiet off season up until the night of July 19th. That was, of course, the night they traded for Ty Lawson from the Denver Nuggets. The trade grabbed national headlines, and was one of the most talked about moves in the NBA off season. However, in this article I want to discuss the other moves the Rockets made in the offseason, and two in particular that I believe will have big impacts on the upcoming 2015-2016 season.

First, let’s quickly run through the other moves the Rockets made this off season:

Resigned PG Patrick Beverley to 4 yr/$25 million contract

Resigned F Corey Brewer to 3 yr/$24 million contract

Drafted Sam Dekker and Montrezl Harrell ‘

‘Signed Marcus Thornton to 1 yr veteran’s minimum contract’

Resigned Jason Terry to 1 yr veteran’s minimum contract

Resigned K.J. McDaniels to a 3 yr/$10 million contract

The Rockets were really focused on retaining their core this off season, which makes sense considering the fact that they made the Western Conference Finals last season, even while missing Patrick Beverley and Donatas Motiejunas. There are two moves in particular that I believe will make a bigger impact on the team’s success this season than people are giving them credit for.

Marcus Thornton can be a solid contributor off the bench for the Rockets. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The first move is the signing of Marcus Thornton. Thornton averages 12.7 ppg for his career, and is also a career 36% three point shooter, something everyone knows the Rockets love to do.

While he is not good at driving to the basket, passing, or playing defense, Thornton will really only be counted on to come off the bench to shoot threes and space the floor for James Harden and big men such as Motiejunas and Dwight Howard.

Finally, for the veteran’s minimum, there is really no risk of wasting cap space on Thornton, as it is not hard to believe that he outperforms that value this season.

The second move that I believe didn’t get enough attention is the resigning of Jason Terry. Many will point to Terry’s age (38 by the time the new season begins) and the Rockets depth at guard as reasons why the move wasn’t significant.

However, given Patrick Beverley’s recent struggles with injury, and Ty Lawson’s personal demons, don’t be surprised to see Terry on the floor on a semi-regular basis. Last season, Terry averaged 7 ppg and shot 39% from three, proving his worth on this Rockets team.

More importantly, this move is underrated because Terry is an excellent leader with championship experience, something the Rockets don’t have that much of. Even if Terry doesn’t see the floor that often, he can act as something of a “player-coach” giving tips to younger players from the bench and inspiring the team to give more effort when times are tough.

I loved Terry’s contributions last season, and bringing him back for the veteran’s minimum was an excellent move by Daryl Morey and the Rockets.

What do you think was the most underrated move of the off season for the Rockets? Share your opinions and ideas in the comments section below!

Next: Who Should Come Off The Bench?

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