This summers free agency pool features a player who last season averaged, 16 points per game, 5.5 rebounds per game, 4.0 assists per game, shooting 47% from the field and 37% from the three point line. He stands at 6 foot 9, weighs about 210 pound, 25 years old, and would only cost $964,750 to keep yet the Houston Rockets declined Chandler Parsons option to stick around one more year, for a very simple reason.
The bigger names in free agency.
Players like Parsons, Gordon Hayward and Lance Stephenson have been lost in the shuffle this off season. This free agency pool features players like LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade and Phoenix Suns guard Eric Bledsoe and these players are getting all of the accolades and praises from other teams before a player like Parsons.
The Rockets are not exercising their option on Parsons, due to the fact they want to pursue LeBron and make sure there is enough cap space to spare to possibly get one more piece for James. Parsons seems like a great fit into those plans for the Rockets, especially at his small price and it would also not limit them to keep him for only one more season, the Rockets also have “Bird Rights” due to drafting him 38th overall in the 2011 draft for next year so they can even resign him to a deal and go over the cap.
The fear with Parsons is that a team might swoop in and offer him a contract that is a little to costly for Houston to even consider. The Mavericks, Timberwolves, Bulls and Lakers all have interest in Parsons. For three of those teams, Lakers, Bulls and Mavericks, it seems like Parsons is more of a back-up plan in case the teams can not land a top tier free agent. The Rockets always have the option to keep Parsons but he seems to be more of a back-up plan for Houston just in case they can’t land one of the guys they want.
Parsons seems to have the potential to be a top NBA player in a few short years. The money he will get will be very deserved and very well earned for Parsons, who I imagine still has not erased the vision of Damian Lillard hitting the game winning shot over Parsons to send the Rockets home in the first round of the playoffs. He might be hungrier than ever now to prove the doubters wrong.
Parsons is a favorite around the league. Played all four years at Florida and came into the league with no prior issues and is a favorite among NBA players and personnel. Parsons seems to be one piece away from being up there with the top names in the NBA and there’s no way that Parsons will have a less than stellar payday this summer.
