ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported over the weekend that the Rockets were picking up the $7.6 million team option on forward Jae’Sean Tate’s contract for the 2024-2025 season.
The decision is not shocking because it was anticipated that Tate, who is now 28 years old, would utilize his last year as a trade chip when he signed a three-year, $20,63 million contract in 2022. Waiving Tate would have allowed the receiving team to save money right away and avoid paying the luxury tax if the Rockets had included him in a deal either this season or last season for salary matching purposes. Tate might potentially attract interest from a playoff contender in need of defensive wing depth.
When the Rockets started their rebuilding project after trading superstar guard James Harden, Tate was considered a building brick. Tate averaged 4.1 points and 3.0 rebounds on 47.2% shooting from the field last season. Tate is a competent playmaker and tenacious defender who is, by all accounts, a huge asset in the locker room. However, he has never been able to get better at long-range shooting, a weakness that has severely restricted his offensive potential. Tate’s long-range percentage from 2023–2024 was merely 29.9% in that season. Throughout his career, he has only shot 30.6% from a distance.
Tate’s minutes per game decreased from 21.8 in 2022–2023 to 15.9 in 2023–2024, therefore it’s hard to predict where his minutes will come from. As the team’s starting forwards and sophomore wings Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore will require more minutes for each player’s individual growth, Jabari Smith Jr. and Dillon Brooks are anticipated to return. With both Jalen Green and Fred VanVleet back, Reed Sheppard, a guard selected recently out of Kentucky, should eat up any extra minutes in the backcourt that may have gone to Whitmore. It is conceivable that A.J. Griffin, the forward the Rockets recently acquired and who they reportedly coveted in the 2022 selection, would eventually surpass Tate in the hierarchy.
Tate’s purpose on this roster next season is identical or similar to that of Jock Landale and Jeff Green, both of whom are expected to return. To serve as a sizable salary for salary matching purposes under the rules of the league’s collective bargaining agreement. It’s no secret that the Rockets are expected to go big game hunting this upcoming season with their treasure trove of recently acquired future draft picks from the Phoenix Suns and impressive collection of young talent, all still on rookie scale contracts. But to make a deal work, especially since the Rockets are above the salary cap, they will need to include significant amounts of salary. Enter Tate.
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