Carlos Osorio/Associated Press The Houston Rockets are reportedly hoping to escape from the remaining two years and $41.7 million on Ryan Anderson's contract. Kelly Iko of Rockets Wire reported Monday that the Rockets are "intent on moving Anderson in a trade." If general manager Daryl Morey can't find a taker for the 30-year-old, he will reportedly pursue buyout options. Anderson started 50 of his 66 games during the 2017-18 regular season, but he averaged only 9.3 points per game, his lowest mark since his 2009-10 season with the Orlando Magic. Although Anderson was limited by an ankle injury down the stretch of the regular season, he was mostly healthy in the playoffs while playing a minor role in the team's run to the Western Conference Finals. He averaged only 1.7 points per game in 11 contests, and he didn't score a single point in the seven-game series against the Golden State Warriors. He never came off the bench in two of the Rockets' wins that series, which ended with the team losing in seven games to the eventual champions. Houston instead primarily relied on PJ Tucker and Trevor Ariza at the forward spots, while Luc Mbah a Moute and Gerald Green played valuable minutes off the bench. Tucker is the only one of those four still under contract for next season, which creates uncertainty with Houston's forward rotation. Still, that may not be enough to help Anderson's case with the front office. Video Play Button Videos you might like The 6'10" big man still has value as an offensive mismatch who has made 38.2 percent of his three-point shots in his career. He has made at least 100 threes in seven of the last eight years, with the lone exception being when injuries limited him to only 22 games in 2013-14. His defensive limitations and hefty contract may make him difficult for Houston to move this summer, though.<doc-sep>The Houston Rockets will be at the center of attention as they’re on the brink of free agency starting in a couple of weeks. Kawhi Leonard could be latest blue chip that could be on the move because of his disgruntled status with the San Antonio Spurs. Could we lure him down I-10 East to the Bayou City? Here’s why they must pursue him at all costs. Take a look. The Houston Rockets are well into the reaches of the off season and I’m sure general manager Daryl Morey is up nights trying to figure out how to structure this team to beat the Golden State Warriors. As you know, this team wasn’t successful in doing so but was within one game of dethroning all of what has been sacred in NBA circles through the latter stages of this decade. It’s far from time to give up and the mission should be to try this again with some minor tweaks to this roster. I’m highly doubt that it’s possible for the same team to duplicate the historic run that this team made by winning 65 games so it’s time to tinker with what’s in their control. Surprisingly, one of the most influential players in the NBA today, Kawhi Leonard has requested to be traded as he has become highly disgruntled with the way the San Antonio Spurs handled his quad injury, one that sidelined him for 73 games this season. It’s unlike for the mostly-durable forward to be down that long but with the Spurs’ season being a whole bunch of finger-pointing on how severe his injury was has led to the destruction of a once indestructible bond between he, coach Gregg Popovich and his teammates. You know what I say about that? I think he’d be more than welcome to join the ranks of the Houston Rockets. I honestly think Red Nation would have no qualms of bringing a player that would have no problem fitting into the effective system the Houston Rockets have in place.<doc-sep>Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan is no stranger to trade rumors and free agency speculation, having gone through a memorable process in the summer of 2015. The 10-year veteran, who was the subject of trade talks around last year’s deadline involving him and Clint Capela—talks which went nowhere due to Houston’s desire to keep Capela— has remained focused on the possibility of playing in Houston, two league sources told Rockets Wire. The sources requested anonymity because they are unauthorized to speak on the record about Jordan’s intentions. According to one source, Jordan was in the ears of multiple Rockets players throughout the 2017-2018 season, expressing his longtime desire to play in his hometown. The source also detailed the events surrounding the infamous Clippers-Rockets postgame locker room altercation earlier in January. According to the source, after the altercation, Jordan spoke to multiple Rockets players on the team bus, citing frustration with the Clippers organization and a strong desire to leave. Blake Griffin, then a member of the Clippers and a teammate of Jordan, was traded to the Detroit Pistons less than two weeks later. Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta has stated multiple times that he will match any offer sheet that comes his way for the 23-year-old Capela, but in the unlikely event that Houston lets him walk, Jordan remains a strong contingency plan. Jordan, 29, has a player option for next season for $24.1 million that he is almost certain to decline in order to test free agency. The clearest financial path to his joining the Rockets is a sign-and-trade scenario involving Capela going to the Clippers. However, it is extremely unlikely Houston would be interested in such a move, given their investment in developing Capela over the past four seasons and his being six years younger than Jordan. Capela is one of three finalists for the NBA’s Most Improved Player award, the winner of which will be announced June 25.<doc-sep>There is a lot of talent in the 2018 free agency class, with that being said, here are three free agents that the Rockets shouldn’t pursue under any circumstance. Free agency doesn’t begin until July 1, but rumors about star players taking their talents elsewhere have been brewing for weeks. For the Rockets, they’ve been frequently linked to LeBron James and Paul George. Although, Houston doesn’t have much cap room. It’ll be an expensive summer for ownership to just re-sign a few of their own free agents. Trades, buyouts and players taking pay cuts can create more wiggle room in the salary cap. Daryl Morey and his staff will turn over every stone in order to sign a big name free agent. Anything can happen after July 1, and a player that Houston isn’t looking at now could become an attractive option in the future. One of Houston’s big name free agents could leave, creating a hole in the roster that another free agent could potentially fill. Here are three players that the Rockets shouldn’t consider signing under any circumstance in free agency.<doc-sep>
In terms of free agency, the summer of 2016 can best be described as the infamous Oprah meme—“You get some money! You get some money! And you get some money!” Power forward Ryan Anderson, then a member of the New Orleans Pelicans, was one of those beneficiaries, inking a lucrative four-year, $80-million deal to join the Houston Rockets. It was expected that the salary cap would continue to rise, due to the windfall of cash the league received from its new media-rights deals with Disney and Turner. Or in other words, Houston was playing with house money. That hasn’t been the case, and with free agency on the horizon, Houston would like to free up space to pursue big-name targets such as LeBron James and Paul George. Finding a taker for Anderson’s contract is one of the most straightforward ways to clear salary, although in execution it could be difficult. According to two people with knowledge of the Rockets’ thinking, the team’s general manager Daryl Morey is intent on moving Anderson in a trade. One person said the Rockets could pursue buyout options if no such agreement is met. Both people requested anonymity because they are unauthorized to speak on the record of Anderson’s situation. The players’ union had decided it didn’t want to smooth the salary cap jump over several years, and instead wanted most of the money at once. This obviously benefited those who would enter free agency in 2016, as there were a number of notable names. To the front offices, however, this was a mistake, and once the cap stopped rising, a lot of teams were left with undesirable, albatross contracts for middle-of-the-park level talent. Once such contract is Anderson’s. After losing his starting spot to PJ Tucker, he’s been relegated to a bit-part role, especially during the postseason. As it stands, Houston has repeatedly tried to get off of Anderson’s remaining $41 million— once this time last summer as reported by Marc Stein, and another before this season’s trade deadline. A buyout could be tricky, given that Anderson is owed so much. Unless he agrees to give back a substantial portion of that money — and he has no incentive to do so, unless he absolutely wants out of Houston at any cost — a buyout won’t clear much cap room for the Rockets. The best they could hope to do would be to waive him using the stretch provision, which would allow them to spread his cap hit over the next five seasons while still paying him everything he’s owed. Trading him also would be difficult. Morey will likely have to attach at least one and maybe multiple future first-round picks to incentivize a team to take on Anderson’s deal and might have to take some bad money back. It remains to be seen whether the Rockets will be able to find a taker, but they’re going to try.