3 signs of validation for the Rockets' front office

1. Rockets pass on Chandler Parsons well before deal with Grizzlies

Following three largely successful seasons in the Space City, the Houston Rockets opted to let Chandler Parsons walk. The Rockets landed Parsons by way of the 2011 NBA Draft, when they selected him in the second-round.

In Parsons' second season he posted averages of 15.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 48.6 percent shooting, and 38.5 percent from deep, clearly outplaying his draft position. In Parsons' third season, he bested those numbers, averaging 16.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4 assists, 47.2 percent from the field, and 37 percent from long-range.

The Rockets let Parsons bolt, as they opted to bring in the defensive-minded Trevor Ariza, who was coming off a 2013-14 season in which he averaged 14.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 40.7 percent from deep. Parsons landed a three-year deal with the Dallas Mavericks worth $46 million, which included a player option in the final year.

After just two years in the Big D, Parsons had had enough and decided to jump ship and join the Memphis Grizzlies. Yardbarker's Sean Keane explained why Parsons cracked his list of the worst contracts (which the Rockets dodged).

"It's incredible that Chandler Parsons signed a contract with Dallas in a strip club, and it's not nearly the worst free agency decision associated with him. After two unspectacular years with the Mavs, where he got hurt in the 2015 playoffs and missed the end of the 2015-16 season with knee surgery, Parsons opted out of his deal and signed a giant four-year, $94 million deal with Memphis.

His knee never got better, and Parsons played only 95 games in his three seasons. The deal torpedoed the Grizzlies, who went into full rebuild mode and lost Marc Gasol and Mike Conley. Memphis dumped his contract on the Hawks, who will pay him $25 million this year to barely play."

The Rockets knew to dump Parsons years before he got his payday from the Grizzlies.