EVERY-THING SPORTS
Here's what a KPJ extension could look like for Houston Rockets
Jul 27, 2022, 1:04 pm
How much is too much to pay Kevin Porter Jr?Composite image by Jack Brame
kevin-porter
The Rockets are on the move. They have drafted well, gotten rid of some bad contracts, and have young guys ready to develop into stars in Jalen Green, Kevin Porter Jr, Jabari Smith Jr, Josh Christopher, Tari Eason, and others. Those days of only winning 20 or so games are about to be a distant memory. This coming season, they may even challenge for a play-in spot. At the conclusion of last season, they were 14 games out of the 10th and final play-in spot. Having to overcome the Spurs, Lakers, Kings, Blazers, and Thunder shouldn't be as difficult as it seems. Most of those teams won't be any better this coming season, and some of the other teams that made the playoffs may take steps backwards.
Part of rebuilding a team with young talent means knowing who to offer extensions to, when, and how much. Home teams can offer players a five-year deal, while opposing teams can offer a four-year deal. Enter KPJ. He's going into the final year of his rookie deal. He and the team reportedly have mutual interest in an extension, according to The Athletic. Jae'Sean Tate was the first of this new crop of guys to re-sign. His three year, $20.5 million dollar deal was very team friendly. Tate said he feels home here and took less to stay because he feels this is best for him, and he wants to see things through with the Rockets. While that's a rare idea for a young player to not maximize his earning potential, one can't expect everyone to do so.
KPJ is eligible for a five-year max worth up to $188 million (25% of the cap, with a year on salary of $32.45 million). That most likely won't happen. So what will his extension look like? I could see anywhere from a short term deal in the neighborhood of two to three years, or a full five-year commitment. The length will hinge upon how confident the team is in his ability to be here long term and develop into the role they envision for him. Part of that is contingent upon his attitude taking the full turn for the better, with no more hiccups like he's had in the past.
The monetary value is another thing. To keep it simple, I'll speak in terms of average annual value. Anything in the area of $8-15 million a year says they see him as a role player. $18-20+ million says they see him as a future cornerstone of the franchise moving forward. Green is obviously being positioned as the guy. He will command a full max extension when he's eligible. KPJ seems as if he sees himself in the same light, or at least similarly. Let's look at some of his strengths and weaknesses (shout out to my good friend Tim for his observations):
Strengths: When focused, he's proven he can be a point guard. He's improved his shooting and continues to get better. Good in transition, attacking the basket or getting the ball to a teammate. Good ball handler.
Weaknesses: Has to control his emotions, limit turnovers, and improve defense. Also needs to learn how to be a leader on/off the court.
Final thoughts: I think something to benefit him and the team moving forward would be best. A three-year deal, with a player option for the final year worth $15-20 million per year is fair. This gives him security, gives the team flexibility, and opens the door for a max extension if he proves he's worthy after two years. Jalen Brunson signed for 4yr/$104 million with the Knicks this offseason. That would be the ceiling for KPJ since his career numbers are very similar. The fear of him falling apart gives cause for concern, so does the lack of playoff production, which helped Brunson tremendously. I'd also put a Kyler Murray type clause for him to check in with John Lucas and/or a team approved mentor to keep him on the straight and narrow. He's definitely worth keeping around to see what he can develop into, but not at the cost of the team's goals and detriment of the development of others.
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Jan 10, 2025, 2:32 pm
Everyone raved about the leadership of second-year quarterback C.J. Stroud this week as the Houston Texans prepared for their wild-card playoff game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Everyone, that is, except the man himself.
“I don’t think I’m a great (leader),” Stroud said sheepishly. “I don’t know. That’s probably a bad thing to say about yourself, but I don’t think I’m all that when it comes to leading. I just try to be myself.”
But the 23-year-old Stroud simply being himself is exactly what makes him the undisputed leader of this team.
“C.J. is authentic, he’s real,” coach DeMeco Ryans said. “It’s not only here, it’s in the locker room around the guys and that’s what leadership is to me. As you evolve as a leader, you just be authentic to yourself. You don’t have to make up anything or make up a speech or make up something to say to guys. C.J. is being C.J.”
Sixth-year offensive lineman Tytus Howard said he knew early on that Stroud would be special.
“He has that aura about him that when he speaks, everybody listens,” he said.
Stroud has helped the Texans win the AFC South and reach the playoffs for a second straight season after they had combined for just 11 wins in the three years before he was drafted second overall.
He was named AP Offensive Rookie of the Year last season, when Houston beat the Browns in the first round before falling to the Ravens in the divisional round.
His stats haven’t been as good as they were in his fabulous rookie season when he threw just five interceptions. But he has put together another strong season in Year 2 despite missing top receiver Nico Collins for five games early and losing Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell to season-ending injuries in the second half of the season. He also started every game despite being sacked a whopping 52 times.
“He’s taken some crazy shots,” Howard said. “But even if he’s getting sacked and stuff like that, he just never lets that get to him. He just continues to fight through it, and it basically uplifts the entire offense.”
He also finds ways to encourage the team off the field and works to build chemistry through team get-togethers. He often invites the guys over to his house for dinner or to watch games. Recently, he rented out a movie theater for a private screening of “Gladiator II.”
“He’s like, ‘I want the guys to come in and bond together because this thing builds off the field and on the field,’” Howard said. “So, we need to be closer.”
Another thing that makes Stroud an effective leader is that his teammates know that he truly cares about them as people and not just players. That was evident in the loss to the Chiefs when Dell was seriously injured. Stroud openly wept as Dell was tended to on the field and remained distraught after he was carted off.
“It was good for people to see me in that light and knowing that there is still a human factor to me,” he said. "And I think that was good for people to see that we’re just normal people at the end of the day.”
Stroud said some of the leaders who molded him were his father, his coaches in high school and college, and more recently Ryans.
His coach said Stroud has been able to lead the team effectively early in his career because he knows there are others he can lean on if he needs help.
“Understanding that it’s not all on him as a leader, it’s all of our guys just buying in, doing what they have to do,” Ryans said. “But also, C.J. understanding a lot of guys are looking up to him on the team and he takes that role seriously. But it’s not a heavy weight for him because we have other leaders, as well, around him.”
Stroud considers himself stubborn and though some consider that a bad quality, he thinks it’s helped him be a better leader. He's had the trait as long as he can remember.
“That kind of carried into the sport,” he said. “Even as a kid, my mom used to always say how stubborn I was and just having a standard is how I hear it. It’s stubborn (but) I just have a standard on how I like things to be done and how I hold myself is a standard.”
And, to be clear, he doesn’t consider himself a bad leader, but he did enjoy hearing that others on the team consider him a great one.
“I just don’t look at myself in that light of just I’m all-world at that,” he said. “But I try my best to lead by example and it’s cool because I don’t ask guys and to hear what they have to say about that is kind of cool.”
Though he doesn’t consider himself a great leader, Stroud does have strong feelings about what constitutes one. And he’s hoping that he’ll be able to do that for his team Saturday to help the Texans to a victory, which would make him the sixth quarterback in NFL history to start and win a playoff game in both of his first two seasons.
“That would be making everybody around you better,” he said of great leaders. “Kind of like a point guard on the offense, the quarterback on the football team, the pitcher on a baseball team — just making everybody around you better.”