Houston Rockets shooting guard Jalen Green “has agreed to a three-year, $106 million rookie contract extension with the franchise,” per ESPN insider Shams Charania. “The deal includes a player option in the third season, providing Green the ability to increase his earning potential down the road.”
With this contract agreement, the 2021 No. 2 pick has become “the first NBA player ever to successfully negotiate a 2-plus-1 rookie extension on a nine figure deal.”
Rockets Sign Jalen Green To First-Of-Its-Kind Extension
There was a time when it seemed like Green was on the verge of being traded. In fact, if the rumors are true, the Rockets tried to ship him off to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Mikal Bridges. The Nets obviously turned the deal down, eventually sending Bridges to the New York Knicks for a pile of first-round picks. However, in that moment, Green’s future was its cloudiest.
It wasn’t just that Houston was questioning whether he should continue to be a franchise cornerstone. The league as a whole was wondering whether Green would get his act together on the court. Though a supremely gifted athlete with a knack for putting the ball in the basket, he didn’t play smart or hard enough. Rockets head coach Ime Udoka was unenthused, hounding the California native who was expected to be their top dog.
Pressure Bursts Pipes And Produces Diamonds
To be fair, Udoka didn’t make it easy for Green to get off to a good start in 2023-24.
With the arrivals of Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks, Green had fewer opportunities to impact the game with the ball in his hands. Instead of letting Green play through mistakes, he shortened his leash, especially in the fourth quarter. Even when Green played well, Udoka often responded with tough love.
Perhaps, like a drill sergeant, Udoka was trying to see how much Green could take. To that point, a player who wasn’t mentally strong enough would’ve folded. To Green’s credit though, while he was definitely frustrated by the situation, it didn’t break him. Pressure can either burst pipes or produce a diamond and in his case it was the latter.
From the 2024 All-Star Break through the 2024-25 preseason, Green has played with irrefutable effort. He’s better at processing what he needs to do at both ends. He’s even playing with better balance and pace, looking like the type of star who can dominate offensively for the next decade.
When Green inked his extension, that was likely on the front office’s mind. He still needs to prove that his new mindset is here to stay. However, the doubts surrounding him are slowly melting away.
