Jaygup is perfect next to Scary Gary and Scoot. Because he plays physical defense, shoots the 3 and can finish in traffic.
Extension? That's not a banana you see in my pocket. The way the entire team is playing is making things a bit hard
With regards to potentially locking up Garry Bird long term, one really big advantage the Rockets are going to have is the $8,046,953 that is remaining in the non-taxpayer MLE. One thing to keep in mind is that if the Rockets sign Mathews to a deal using the MLE rather than converting him this year, he will get the entire amount of the MLE for the year, even if he happened to sign it on the very last day of the season. In this regard, they have a pretty powerful bargaining chip, as they can effectively give him a signing bonus that immediately rewards him while also taking advantage of the fact that they don't have to worry about exceeding the luxury tax this year (currently the Rockets are about $9.5M below the line), barring taking on salary in any trades. If I were in Houston Management, I'd also push heavily to get a descending contract structure, to try and squeeze out as much cap room as possible in the key summer of 2023 when Wall is off the books, and the Rockets may be looking to operate below the salary cap. I also think getting a team option/NG year at the end might be possible. Below are three contract options utilizing the full MLE; one signing him any time before Jan 10th (when the MLE starts to pro-rate down), and doing a descending contract structure with a team option on the 4th year. A second would be signing him on March 5th (the day after he plays his 50th game and must be either sent down or converted), and includes a standard 5% annual raise. The final scenario is if Mathews follows Danuel House's lead and refuses to sign a contract extension, and then signs a deal for the full non-taxpayer mid-level next year (this would be the maximum that the Rockets could match next summer, since they don't have bird rights on him). As you can see, by front-loading his salary this year, the Rockets could feasibly get his total 4-year compensation to be roughly in the same ball-park as a full MLE, except that his salary would be up to 40% less when taking into consideration the cap and luxury tax in the key years after the summer of 2023. Let's hope that Mathews continues to show out over the next month, and that the Rockets feel confident in giving him this kind of contract. It's always a risk when a small sample size is involved on a non-competitive team (imagine if KPJ had been extension eligible this summer, what would he have gotten versus now where I probably wouldn't offer him an extension at all until he proves he can play effectively next to Jalen Green). But these are the kinds of numbers I would feel pretty good about gambling on. Prior to Jan 10 2022 $ 8,046,953 2023 $ 7,644,605 2024 $ 7,242,258 2025 $ 6,839,910 Total $ 29,773,726 March 5th 2022 $ 4,814,411 2023 $ 5,055,131 2024 $ 5,295,852 2025 $ 5,536,572 Total $ 20,701,966 Re-sign as an RFA in the Summer 2022 $ 20,507 2023 $ 10,095,000 2024 $ 10,599,750 2025 $ 11,104,500 Total $ 31,819,757
I think his contract is going to look a lot closer to Danuel House's than those 7-11 million numbers. Let's not forget House was looking fantastic when we signed him too. I think he'll get somewhere in the 4-5 million dollar a year range - which is most similar to the number you have at March 5th. I'd love to do that descending.
Depends whether Mathews thinks he can do better as an UFA, as a 3rd year 2 way player, I think he is on a one year deal, - and he will be an UFA after this season. If the Rox deem they want him, I think they will need to pay him more than they did House because he is so close to just leaving for nothing and with the way he plays, and the attention he is getting around the league, someone will want him as a complimentary piece....imagine him on GS, Utah or Phoenix.....yikes.... I suspect that the Rox will need to act sooner than later. DD
Great post. Others who know the dates will have to comment on your timeline. While it might be tempting to turn down an offer to go for the big dollars in the offseason, the risk of injury is very real. Matthews looks like a superior fit here, I hope he’ll sign on. Can't wait to root for him for a long, long time.
He seem like a nice team player and have no fear of shooting when the game is online. He had problems with the former teams in the past or we would already been signed. This team needs shooting and he is a BIG part of this streak. If he continue to play lights out against the Bucks, Hawks and Memphis and at the end of the month, then he is the man.....lets be patient
I don’t think he has proved himself to be worth more than 5 million a year in his final year of a 4 year contract, personally. Adjusted to inflation, think something similar to Augustin’s 2014-2015 $6M contract with the Bulls. $7-8M for our boy Mathews. I’m not ready to throw $7 million a year at him for 4 years.
Matthews might be the only good white guy Rockets fans may see for another 20+ since Bullard. They want to make it last. lol
Mathews transcends looks, transcends skin color, everythang. I know peeps want to market that, too bad.
It's a gamble no matter how you look at it. Too small of a sample size of games to throw big $$'s at him, but he may feel indebted to Houston for the opportunity he's been given and accept a lower offer. But if we low ball him (based on his perception of what he thinks he's worth - or his manager) then he may decide to test free agency. Like I mentioned in another thread, look at the likes of what other teams are paying shooters like Hield, Bertans and Robinson. And I think Gary Bird has shown much better defence, with just as good 3pt % (based on his smaller sample size). Don't want to pay stupid money, but we can't be cheap either cause someone will pay him.
Hey, no doubt.....I want to be pleasantly surprised. It's after they get the contract you have to worry. Anderson got us pretty good. Unlike Anderson, Matthews shoots off curls, and screens. Anderson was the definition of one dimensional at least Matthews is two. He plays D and hustles.
