Rockets sign Jabari Smith Jr. to 5-year, $122M extension

So you pick Chet, but you don't pay him $250M after you already won the 'ship

In any case, I don't think we win a championship during this year's playoffs by replacing Jabari with Chet--so I think it's fully justified to be glad we didn't pick him for the Rockets' situation.

 

I'm glad Stone got Bari's extension done before Thunder did Chet's. Chet is much better than Bari but I'm not sure if he's more than double better than Bari.

 

I just hope Bari doesn't get that little green devil in him after seeing Banchero and Holmgrens extensions and is just thankful that he's rich AF!

 

AGAIN!!!!!
Jabari will OUT PLAY his Contract!!!

Unlock the LOCK-SMITH JR!!!

Rocket River

 

Obviously there’s no way to quantify “twice as good”, by vorp chet has been about 8 times more valuable. He’s definitely more than double as valuable as Jabari though, realistically maybe 4 times?

 

Why? U can’t just assume that Chet is getting that deal in Houston, and Jabari can’t hold his jock strap, so replacing Chet with Jabari would’ve made this team significantly better…Jabari is the same dude who played 20 mpg and took 5 shots a game in the playoffs for us

the argument is basically “I’d take the mediocre guy over players way better than him because they get paid a lot more” while disregarding the situation those significantly better players are in

any young player that has shown star potential would receive a max like Paolo if they were playing in Orlando because Orlando can’t afford to lose young talent

OKC just won a title and is the favorite once again, and y’all think they’re gonna start penny pinching young players like Chet? They learned their lesson with Harden. U only get so many opportunities to win a title. Presti would never swap Chet with Jabari in a million years, contracts and all

 

I think calling Jabari mediocre is a bit harsh. He is still growing and he hasn’t been in a situation yet (hopefully that changes this year) where his skill set is maximized. Chet was basically dropped in a ready made situation. Don’t get me wrong I think Chet is more talented, but I think that gap could close. I agree with your take on the contract but that number for Chet scares me. That dudes leg could snap at any time. I think it will at some point. They had to pay him though

 

I hear what you are saying however I would argue that the statement from Stone was specifically geared towards Cam. This was not the right situation for Cam to develop in. He did not have the right mentality required to competing on a team with championship aspirations. He assumed he deserved playing time because of his pedigree but didn't put in the necessary work to make it happen. The OKC guys are all hardworking put your head down and work types whereas Cam was entitled. He needs to go to a bad team. where his lottery percentages of being good could be discovered. There is no guarantee he will ever be a winning player and the Rockets couldn't afford to have a malcontent on the bench.

 

Still Growing, too young....

What's the new slogan for next year?

 

My only concern about Chet is his injury history. Otherwise, I would easily prefer him at his extension over Jabari's.

I like Jabari, but I'm not even 100% confident he lives up to his $24.5M average annual salary. He may not even be a starter. He's been below league average in efficiency for every season of his career on an extremely selective shot diet. He's not a defensive anchor. A healthy Chet would significantly raise the ceiling of this team and I would happily go into the apron to re-sign him because we would likely be the title favorites by a mile. Chet doesn't need the ball to be impactful and we have yet to see Jabari be impactful. Jabari being a contributor (not an impact player) on a reasonable salary has blinded you to his value.

Are you going to do this with every player in the 2022 draft class? When Jalen Williams gets his max extension are you going to ask if everyone is glad we drafted Jabari over him? Yes, Banchero, Holmgren, and Williams are worth double the salary of Jabari. Yes, I wish we could have drafted those guys instead. There is a reason Jabari got the extension he did.

 

maybe it’s a bit harsh, but aside from his defense which is just ok to me (he’s not competing for any All-Defense teams or anything), nothing has really stood out so far

shooting 44% from the field and 35% from deep on just 56% TS as a 4th or 5th option who’s basically an afterthought for the defense…can’t shoot above average from three even tho most of his looks aren’t even heavily contested and he was getting KD/Klay talk as a shooter coming out of college…his rebounding is decent, his playmaking nonexistent

he’s just been meh so far, and his contract reflects that with some potential baked into the dollar amount…if Jabari thought he was about to blow up, I doubt he’d choose to lock himself into 5 years of role player money

we can say Chet dropped into a ready made situation, but he was the 2nd overall pick which means OKC had to be ass to get him…they had won 22 and 24 games the 2 seasons prior to drafting Chet, nobody was really thinking much of OKC back then…it was basically often injured Shai, Dort, and a bunch of nobodies, but they nailed the Chet and J-dub picks in the same draft

if Chet was in Houston, there’s no way I could see him relegated to the bench like Jabari was or only getting 20 mpg in the playoffs…him and Sengun in the frontcourt would’ve been a nightmare for the league

 

I think more than anything else, you're being too hard on Jabari. Jabari is a career 13 and 8 guy with 1 block per game and average efficiency for a power forward, to Chet's 16 and 8 with 2 blocks per game and very good (but not elite for a big man) efficiency. Chet is better on defense, but Jabari isn't a pushover--I'd peg him as a bit above average right now. Jabari has been much more available than Chet, despite the freak broken hand thing this season, and that really does matter to his value.

You may be right about the differing situations and such. I agree OKC is the favorite again next season, and if that works out, maybe it will all be worth it from Presti's perspective.

I'm just saying that from our perspective, I'm grateful that they've just made a move that risks closing the window a lot sooner for them, if Holmgren's career ends up riddled with injuries and he basically turns into dead money (see: Ben Simmons).

 

I only asked because Paolo and Chet were taken ahead of Jabari and so many people here have complained about the Rockets being stuck with him at #3.

I share every concern you have about Jabari.

 

Jabari
12 pts
.4 steals
.7 Block
1.1 Asst
7.0 Reb
35.4% from 3
43.8% from field
30 min a game

Chet
15 pts
.7 steals
2.2 block
2.0 asst
8 rebs
38% from 3
49% from the field
27 min a game

according to ESPN
Are these numbers accurate?

Rocket River

 

He got injured, before the injury Chet was an early MVP ladder candidate....about 20-21 ppg or so with strong block numbers.

Good thing they won the title because I felt healthy again Chet was only 70% of what he could have been.

Even in his rookie season he was better, 16.5 and 8 and 2.3.

Missing 3 months does that to you.....

 

Why are they supposed to pay player "championship bonus"? These guys are paid to win games. They won enough games to win a championship. Good for them.

Sure they can get rid of Harty and Dort to stay under Apron 2. But will they be able to win as much without those guys?

If every championship team has to pay their players extra just because they have won it all, then it will be a whole bunch of flash in the pan champions because they can't afford to keep the team together to defend the championship.

 

Maybe they should put it in the next CBA that player salary will straightly be based on their VORP number. No more negotiation needed. We can get rid of those bloodsucking agents too.

 

It is not a regular bonus per se but because they won it all, they weren't going to ask the main contributors for major discounts.

It might vex you fans here but Presti can be very generous.

This is how you maintan fairness with players once they leave you as well.

Dort and Hart know that they are role players and that worse teams will pay them fortunes.

Their agents know that.

Paying stars much more than role players is normal.

What they paid role player Fred was not normal but necessary.

 

but contracts are always for the future! As cool as that system would be it's impossible

 

We can argue if Chet deserves the money or not, but it's more like a sign of appreciation and commitment to a star player.

I don't see a problem with that.

And Shai's new extension isn't even kicking in for 2 years. In 2027.

The real deal is how they communicate it to their role players, which shouldn't be a biggie.

What Boston did was a bit extreme, they viewed everyone outside of Jay and Jay as trade fodder, no loyalty, no nothing.

And Clutchfans is not furious of that standard.

Paycuts never worked for Durant, he bolted out of Oakland just 3 years after he joined them, winning wasn't enough, he wanted his own team and Super max.

That is the reason I hated that guy, why can't you do your Brooklyn and not join GSW in the first place.