The Houston Rockets have tied down Kevin Durant on a further two-year, $90 million deal extension that keeps him with the team through the 2027-28 campaign. The deal means that KD signed a contract roughly $30 million short of the maximum that he was eligible for.
However, what does it mean for the likes of Amen Thompsen and Tari Eason, who are both also due for extensions? According to Marc Stein of The Stein Line, both players should also get the extensions they seemingly deserve due to Durant's contract saving the Rockets considerable money.
“Word is that Houston hopes to re-sign Eason alongside Amen Thompson at a number significantly lower than Jabari Smith Jr.'s five-year, $122 million contract inked early in the summer,” Stein wrote.
Stein claimed that the Rockets’ ability to pay Eason was directly connected to the KD contract. The Houston front office is well aware that they are headed toward a situation where they will need to balance payments in order to save money on the luxury tax in the coming campaigns.
Further, Thompson’s ability to stand in for the injured Fred VanVleet serves as an added bonus, with his defensive impact also being a reason why he is expected to be paid big money.
“You have probably seen Thompson starting at point guard for the Rockets in the wake of the devastating Fred VanVleet injury. That's on top of the considerable impact he already delivers at the other end, which has established Thompson as many coaches' preseason pick for Defensive Player of the Year,” he explained.
In a nutshell, Stein believes that Thompson is headed toward a max deal when he becomes eligible for it next summer.
“Those same capologists are thus left to ponder how much less Durant would be willing to take to help the Rockets maintain a contending core for this twilight of his career. Two team officials who know the CBA like the back of their hand told me this week that they would be urging Houston, were they working in the Rockets' front office, to cap any offer at $80 million over two years. Would Durant be open to that sort of pay cut?” he said.
The question has now been answered, with Durant taking considerably less money than what he was eligible for. That move is expected to help the Rockets over the coming time and should result in them locking down both Thompson and Tari Eason.
