Rockets, Marcus Smart Agree To Two-Year Deal

On the heels of two injury-plagued seasons in Memphis and Washington, Smart bet on himself last summer by giving up $6.8MM in a buyout agreement with the Wizards and then signing a one-plus-one deal with the Lakers worth the bi-annual exception (starting at $5.1MM).

That bet paid off, as the former Defensive Player of the Year started 54 of his 62 games for Los Angeles, averaging 9.3 points, 3.0 assists, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.4 steals in 28.5 minutes per game while recapturing his form as one of the NBA’s best perimeter defenders.

Playing an increased role in the playoffs with Luka Doncic sidelined and Austin Reaves missing several games, Smart increased his averages to 12.9 PPG, 5.1 APG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.4 SPG in Los Angeles’ 10 postseason contests, starting all of them.

As Smart’s Monday option decision deadline neared, multiple reports indicated that the Rockets were preparing to pursue him once he declined that option in the hopes of reuniting him with Ime Udoka, who coached the veteran guard in Boston.

While that reporting suggested that the Rockets were hoping to offer a three-year contract, the team would need to use the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to offer more than two seasons, which would create a hard cap at the first tax apron. Taking that route would have compromised Houston’s ability to re-sign restricted free agent forward Tari Eason without shedding salary, so the team is instead poised to add Smart using the taxpayer mid-level exception, resulting in a second-apron hard cap instead.

Although Charania reports the value of the deal at $13MM, a two-year taxpayer MLE deal technically caps out at about $12.43MM, as we detailed on Tuesday. Smart won’t be able to officially sign until the July moratorium ends next Monday, so if the Rockets end up freeing up the non-taxpayer mid-level exception – perhaps by trading Dorian Finney-Smith, which they were said to be looking into – they could adjust the terms of their agreement with Smart.

For now though, Smart is expected to lock in just a single season with Houston before having the opportunity to test free agency again in a year. He’ll join Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard in a revamped Rockets backcourt that will also feature Fred VanVleet, who is returning from an ACL tear, and Bogdan Bogdanovic, who reached a contract agreement with the club on Tuesday night.

Taking into account their tentative deals with Smart and Bogdanovic, as well as JD Davison‘s non-guaranteed contract, the Rockets are currently about $25.7MM below the second apron with two or three roster spots left to fill.