Houston Rockets Face Important Decision With Kevin Porter Jr. Free Agency Looming

Next summer, with point guard Kevin Porter Jr. eligible for restricted free agency, the Houston Rockets will encounter what could be considered the first major financial decision of their rebuild. Earlier this summer, they traded big man Christian Wood and re-signed swingman Jae’Sean Tate to a cap-friendly deal, but those were both non-controversial moves, particularly given the small figure on Tate’s contract.

Porter, however, has been a bit of a lightning rod – supremely talented but plagued by maturity concerns. He was suspended for a game earlier last season for getting in his car and leaving the arena at halftime of a 124-111 loss to the Denver Nuggets.

Currently, Porter projects to be the starter at point guard next to shooting guard Jalen Green in Houston’s backcourt. But the Rockets feel strongly about second-year guard Daishen Nix and used the 29th pick in the draft on point guard TyTy Washington. This is all to say that there is insurance at the position if it is decided that Porter is not a long-term fit.

Porter averaged 15.6 points, 6.2 assists, and 4.4 rebounds per game in 2021-2022, his second season with the team after being acquired from the Cleveland Cavaliers in a trade. However, he played only 26 games for the Rockets in 2020-2021. It was an up and down season for Porter, plagued by turnover problems to start the year, but highlighted by drastically improved three-point accuracy. On the year, Porter shot 37.5% on 6.8 3-point attempts per game.

The Rockets currently project to have over $70 million in cap space next summer, in 2023, with the contracts of John Wall and Eric Gordon completely rolling off the books. An early extension for Porter could eat into that space but could also secure him long term at a favorable discount in the event he continues his improvement next season.

If the Rockets submit a qualifying offer after this season, Porter’s fourth, he would become a restricted free agent. He can be extended for up to four seasons beyond the last option season in his contract, bringing the total contract length of his new deal to five seasons. In general, the salary in the first year of an extension to a rookie scale contract may be any amount up to the player’s maximum. This is usually the 0-6 year maximum, which is 25% of the salary cap. Raises in a rookie scale extension are limited to 8% of the salary in the first year of the extension.

A reasonable annual average value for Porter might range anywhere from $10 million to $15 million.