4 players the Houston Rockets chose to hold on to way too long

2. Jae' Sean Tate

Jae’Sean Tate’s arrival to the NBA is a remarkable story. Tate went undrafted and was forced to play overseas- not knowing whether it would lead him to the NBA or not.

In fact, most of the time it doesn’t. However, Tate found his way back into the NBA after stints in the Belgian League and NBL, in which he amassed a Belgian Cup title, a Belgian League All-Star selection, and an All-NBL First-Team selection.

Tate ended up signing a two-year deal with the Rockets, which was very team-friendly, as it was a two-year deal worth less than $3 million in total. Tate ended up making First-Team All-Rookie after averaging 11.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 2020-21.

Tate’s play, coupled with his bargain contract, made the Rockets’ franchise leaders feel as though they had something. However, Tate’s inability to shoot from deep has led to significant spacing issues, so much that Tate reportedly spent the 2022 offseason trying to develop a respectable shot from deep (to no avail, as he made just 28.3 percent of his triples in 2022-23, his career worst).

The Rockets were reportedly offered Grant Williams in exchange for Tate at the trade deadline and rejected the Boston Celtics, which seems unimaginable at this point. Tate, who will be 28-years-old by the time the 2023-24 season starts, has been unable to stay healthy, which is a trend that tends to continue as players age.

For this reason, Tate essentially doesn’t have any value right now, which is partly why the Rockets had to deal KJ Martin instead. And with the Rockets’ logjam at the forward spot, it could be difficult for Tate to find minutes in the rotation.