Should Houston Rockets' Jock Landale "hit the trade block"?

Injuries suck.

Who could argue? They're the worst aspect of professional sports. They can ruin a player's livelihood. Luckily, sometimes an injury's impact isn't quite that drastic.

Sometimes, an injury simply alters our perception of a player. Look at Jock Landale of the Houston Rockets. A nagging ankle injury likely impacted his performance at the beginning of the 2023-24 NBA season. For some time, he barely looked like an NBA player.

When Alperen Sengun went down with his own injury, Landale bounced back. Suddenly, he looked like a quality backup.

Should the Rockets trade him this summer anyway?

Houston Rockets big man named as potential trade candidate

Bleacher Report thinks so. They named Landale as a player who could hit the trade block for the Rockets.

It's easy to track the logic here. The Rockets traded for Steven Adams at this year's deadline. They likely assume he'll be Sengun's primary backup in 2024-25. Why commit an $8 million salary spot to a third-string player?

Still, it takes two to tango. We apologize if you're at home dancing a solo tango as you read this. Most wouldn't consider what you are currently doing to be a true tango.

Sure, the Rockets may be happy to unload Landale. Is he going to have a market?

Houston Rockets should find suitor for Landale

To be specific, Landale has a team option on every year of his contract. It's not an $8 million spot in strict terms - it affords his team financial flexibility.

Still, Landale alone will not fetch the Rockets much. They could flip him for a shooting specialist with a comparable contract, but they're likely to be a defensive liability, or problematic in some other way.

On the other hand, if the Rockets wanted to attach some draft assets to Landale's contract, they could bring in a truly impactful player. He's got a flexible deal, and in theory, he's a viable backup 5:

As long as he's healthy.