NBA Offseason Free Agents, Trade Rumors, and Jeremy Lin Update: Houston Rockets Expected to Trade Linsanity to Have Shot at Carmelo Anthony, Kyrie Irving
The Houston Rockets are planning to make a big splash this summer, which means that Jeremy Lin could be on his way out of Houston this offseason.
Reports indicate that the Rockets are planning to make a strong push to sign Carmelo Anthony or acquire Kyrie Irving in a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers. And in order to have a realistic chance of acquiring either Anthony or Irving, according to Bill Ingram of Basketball Insiders, the Rockets will have to find a taker for Lin along with disgruntled center Omer Asik.
"The Rockets have zero ability to add a big name this summer if they don't move Asik and Lin in the process," Ingram wrote.
Lin, who averaged 12.5 points to go along with 4.1 assists and 2.6 rebounds this season, was reportedly shopped by the Rockets before the trade deadline, along with Asik, but the Rockets did not get what they were looking for.
Trading Lin and Asik is easier said than done, considering the fact that both players will be playing in the final year of their "poison pill" contracts with the Rockets.
Lin and Asik's salaries will only count as $8.3 million on a team's salary cap, but the both players will actually receive a base salary of $14.9 million next season.
If the Rockets successfully find a taker for Lin and Asik, they will be able to free up more than $16 million in salary, and by moving another player, Houston could offer a maximum deal to acquire Anthony as a free agent.
And if they fail to land Anthony, who is also expected to receive lucrative offer from the Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, and New York Knicks, the Rockets will reportedly target Irving.
Acquiring Irving is a long shot at this point, but the Cavaliers could be forced to trade their starting point guard. And if that happens, the Rockets are expected to offer a package involving Lin and Asik, according to Ingram.
"It's possible the Cavaliers could look to deal him before he can walk. If they do, they could almost certainly get more than a package revolving around Asik and Lin, but there's no question that Irving could help the Rockets become a contender," Ingram wrote.