[Shankar] Do not expect Amen to get a max contract extension (and other stuff)

Amen should get $1 more than his brother. That is all he really wants.

 

Protip: Don''t max a player that can't shoot.

 

You have to keep Amen…. plain and simple!

Sengune / Amen / Jabari / Reed Sheppard is the core that will make the Rockets relevant for the next decade.

Sure they never got their Cade / Chet / or Wimbly. But the team they do have isn’t chopped liver. And to be honest Amen is arguably the 2nd best player in his draft class.

It’s the NBA and you have to field the best players on the court. So right now although it’s seems OKC, SA, Detroit have dibs on 8-9 of the next 10 NBA championships; you still have to play the games to prove it so.

Right now the Rockets are building a squad that has a punchers chance of getting an NBA championship. But that’s how the ping pong balls fell; and it’s the cold fact reality.

 

If we can give him like 75% of the max..The rockets will be golden.

 

A Landry’s Select Club membership.

 

He is not a max player, not even better than Ausar.

 

LOL

"Amen is Jalen 2.0"

"Amen and Ausar are exactly the same player"

 

If Amen was playing next to Cade...In the east, on that Detroit team he would've been an All-Star this year and be in the DPOY convo.

Amen is definitely better than Ausar.

I agree...he's not a max guy......But he's not too far off...He's our best young player even not being able to shoot.

 

so you're all for swapping Amen for Ausar straight up?

 

He doesn't deserve a max deal. There isn't a single player on this that deserves one.

 

Can you imagine paying Dennis Rodman over $200 million. This is the level Amen Thompson is at.

The Rockets need a SGA, Anthony Edwards, Luka Doncic high tier offense player.

 

Uh, he really isn’t at Rodman’s level. Or size.

Regardless, you have a good point because the modern NBA is a scoring league. True stars now have to score. Back in the 80s and 90s, bruising defensive players like Rodman had even more value. IMO the golden era of the NBA because defense was more highly valued (and the NBA didn’t fix its own games)

 

According to my calculations, 20-23% of the salary cap next season (165 mil) would be 33-38 million per year. Any more than that is out of the question.

Edit: I should have used the 27-28 salary cap, which would make the numbers 35-40 million.

 

I read something on that a couple weeks back.

Essentially it said FVV would decline the option and sign a longer deal for but for less per year, giving the team the ability to spend a bit more elsewhere.

As much as I've b****ed and complained about upgrading from Fred, if they could get his cap hit down to 15m-20m per, I'd be alright with him sticking around. Even if he's the backup, that's money well spent, assuming he's healthy.

I don't know the numbers they are discussion, just throwing a number out there that gives the team a lot more flexibility not only in terms of cap space but as a bargain contract trade asset.

 

This is where Morey and his I-pad would come in handy. Create a slide show of how many Houston athletes have made 35 million a year and show him that. Get him to agree.

(and leave Deshaun out)

 

For the record - Amen's max (25%) starts at $43,312,500 in 2027/28.

A Sengun special at 21.95% would be $38,028,375

 

Its actually strange. He does less of everything. At *times* his athleticism seems to mirror Amen's (like when he gets up for blocks) but at times it doesn't (he doesnt have the same burst or dexterity and a much stiffer looking shot). He's also just way more stiff in general. He plays like if Amen had a lingering back problem but Ime still ran him out there for 45 minutes (which he would).

I dont think Amen has shown enough offensively to give him a max as much as I like him and continue to think he's the future (Dubose has also said that the Rockets mirror this sentiment). He actually believes they *will* max him so who knows. Something along Sengun's contract would be great for both parties I feel. Or like I said before, throw in incentives for shooting splits.