Rockets acquire Suns picks, return Nets picks to Brooklyn

How did they think that was a good move makes it sound like he is a problem. On him being tradeable, he's still 35% of the cap like he was. Rockets easily matched that same percentage for Durant without using a star. The Rockets in a season or 2 could match it easily without stars (FVV and JSJ will be ~30%) or flip Durant back to them if he's washed at the end of his extension.

I don't think building around him without assets is wise, but that is more everything else. That said, extending him is the only way to potentially keep his value for the team or for a trade (players have way too much power near the end of contracts as the Suns just got hosed not trading KD at the deadline).

 

I think you're misinterpreting why I don't think it's a good move. It's not that Booker isn't a good player, it's that they've got 3 people at his position 2 of whom need to somehow move and they've just DRASTICALLY reduced their roster flexibility by taking a lot of extra play around money away. When this blows up (and it will, because Beal has all the leverage and Jalen's not a superstar) Booker will be the piece they can use to move forward, but who the **** in their right mind is going to give them 74million in assets to pick up Devin ****ing Booker? It's a terrible move, sorry.

 

They have to keep Booker at all cost or else they'll be an irrelevant team like Washington and Utah. They can't rebuild through draft because they spent their picks in the Durant trade.

The only other option for them is trade Booker for picks and hope one the picks can somehow turn into a star player on Booker's level in a not too far future.