3 reasons the Houston Rockets should want Tristan Thompson

1. Short-term commitment

One of the biggest perks to bringing in Thompson is the fact that he’s in the final year of his contract. This means he could possibly be on the buyout market, which would allow the Houston Rockets to sign him at a reduced cost.

But even if that doesn’t happen and the Rockets are somehow able to pull off a trade for Thompson, which would be difficult with his salary of $18.5 million, he’s still set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. This is important considering how Houston Rockets owner is infatuated with dodging the luxury tax year in and year out, which also includes this season as well, according to Jabari Young of CNBC.

Thompson’s status is such that the Rockets won’t have any ties to him after the 2019-20 season, meaning they could go all in with him for the second half of the season and the playoffs. Many have speculated and questioned why the Rockets would replace Capela with Thompson, seeing as they both play fairly similar, but this is one of the biggest differences.

Capela is under contact through the 2022-23 season, which isn’t necessarily appealing for an owner who consistently wants to shed salary and duck the luxury tax. Since Thompson and Capela have some of the same strengths, it has to be appealing for the Houston Rockets to be able to land Thompson and a much cheaper price than Clint (if he’s bought out), and especially with no future ties or guarantees.