Over multiple weeks of discussions with Phoenix, with Rockets general manager Rafael Stone leading the talks, Houston maintained a firm stance in its refusal to include young players like Reed Sheppard, Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason, team sources told The Athletic. The Rockets refused to give up the Suns’ 2027 and 2029 first-round selections as well, no matter how motivated the Suns were to recoup those prized picks (they sent them to Brooklyn in the February 2023 Durant deal, and the Rockets landed them in a June 2024 deal with the Nets).
Source: New York Times
Source: New York Times
What’s the buzz on Twitter?
Sam Quinn @SamQuinnCBS
If you assume Houston is extending Durant, I have to imagine either Jabari Smith or Tari Eason (probably Smith, but maybe this goes into the year and flips) is not extended and therefore isn’t going to be on the team beyond the 25-26 season.
I’d be trying to get both of them. – 1:48 PM
If you assume Houston is extending Durant, I have to imagine either Jabari Smith or Tari Eason (probably Smith, but maybe this goes into the year and flips) is not extended and therefore isn’t going to be on the team beyond the 25-26 season.
I’d be trying to get both of them. – 1:48 PM
Salman Ali @SalmanAliNBA
Rockets starting lineup next year:
PG – Fred VanVleet
SG – Amen Thompson
SF – Kevin Durant
PF – Jabari Smith Jr.
C – Alperen Sengun – 12:58 PM
Rockets starting lineup next year:
PG – Fred VanVleet
SG – Amen Thompson
SF – Kevin Durant
PF – Jabari Smith Jr.
C – Alperen Sengun – 12:58 PM
More on this storyline
The Suns’ conversations focused on the Rockets and Heat in recent days, but both teams showed an unwillingness to part with young cornerstones such as Jabari Smith Jr. and Reed Sheppard (Houston) and Kel’el Ware (Miami) in a Kevin Durant deal, sources said. -via ESPN / June 22, 2025
Eastern Conference scout No. 1 on Dylan Harper: I don’t think he has a real high ceiling, but I think he’ll play, and play for a long time. College assistant coach No. 2 (his team played Rutgers): Very talented, can go both ways, right, left. Prefers left. Obviously, the bloodlines are there. Is he a one or a two? College head coach No. 1 (his team played Rutgers): He’s as good as anyone we’ve played against, including Markelle Fultz and Jabari Smith. He’s not as good as Cunningham or Anthony Edwards, who we also played. Really good reads out of pick-and-rolls for his age. -via New York Times / June 19, 2025
At one point, team sources say, Phoenix was determined to regain control of its draft capital (first-round picks in 2025, 2027 and swap rights in 2029) and at another, was seeking multiple young talents like Alperen Şengün and Jalen Green. Recently, forward Jabari Smith Jr.’s name has come up pertaining to the Suns’ interest, team and league sources say. Green, whose name has been connected to Durant and other stars in trade rumors, is determined to improve upon his playoff struggles and wants to stay in Houston, league sources say. But the Rockets have largely been uninterested in breaking up their depth, even for a future Hall of Famer. There’s also the question of his age and injury history — juxtaposed with the timeline of Houston’s young core — and the tradeoff that comes with championship-chasing and development. -via New York Times / June 15, 2025
Houston’s brass will continue to speak with representation for both Tari Eason and Jabari Smith Jr., both of whom are extension-eligible this summer. According to team sources, they are comfortable matching any offer that would come for either in restricted free agency in 2026, assuming that a deal isn’t agreed upon this offseason. Eason and Smith have been key cogs in Udoka’s setup, with a two-way, unselfish approach that meshes well with the roster. -via New York Times / June 4, 2025
Adam Wexler: #Rockets GM Rafael Stone on the possibility of extensions for Tari Eason & Jabari Smith Jr., he said he won’t comment on any those possibilities, but did say, “They are very important parts of what we do. They are both really, really solid guys. I love those guys.” -via Twitter @AdamJWexler / May 6, 2025
League and team sources have also indicated that VanVleet wants to remain in Houston for the long run, which VanVleet spoke about Sunday. Tari Eason and Smith are also extension-eligible, and team sources say the Rockets are hopeful to keep them in town for the long haul. -via New York Times / May 5, 2025
But Plan B would be to cash in some of the assets that the Rockets patiently accumulated over the past five years to speed up the process via a blockbuster trade. Green is Houston’s leading scorer and one of a handful of “bets,” as Stone puts it, that the Rockets have on the board to grow into that All-NBA talent necessary to make a title run. Sengun, a skilled center, made his first All-Star appearance at age 22 this season. Amen Thompson, 22, the No. 4 pick in the 2023 draft, has already established himself as a dominant defensive force and is just starting to scratch the surface of his offensive potential. Rockets decision-makers consider guard Reed Sheppard, the No. 3 pick who hasn’t cracked a deep rotation on a consistent basis as a rookie, as perhaps the most gifted offensive talent on the roster. -via ESPN / April 30, 2025
Danielle Lerner: Rockets coach Ime Udoka, asked about possibility of playing Jabari Smith Jr. more or Reed Sheppard/Cam Whitmore at all, said “We’re looking at everybody” but noted he doesn’t think HOU’s offensive issues vs GSW are a starting lineup thing. -via Bluesky / April 27, 2025