Jared Jeffries

From the same link came a predicted trade of Jared Jeffries:

Before yesterday's four way trade that saw them move Trevor Ariza for Courtney Lee, and before the dump of David Andersen onto Toronto, Houston were about $10 million over the luxury tax threshold. After those moves, they're now about $3.2 million over it. They also currently have 16 players, eight of whom are big men, and only two of whom can play point guard. The unguaranteed contracts of Mike Harris and Alexander Johnson are easy enough to cut, yet they save only $1.7 million and are not enough to get Houston under the luxury tax. Cutting those two, as well as trading Chuck Hayes for no returning salary, would achieve this. Yet Hayes has done nothing to deserve to be salary dumped; at $2 million for one season, he represents good value for the amount he contributes. Jeffries's $6.8 million expiring will be harder to dump, but it's possible; pairing him with a pick like above and sending him to Sacramento or Washington, or trading him with sweetener (maybe Jermaine Taylor, who was just made redundant by Lee's arrival) to Minnesota for Sebastian Telfair, are all possibilities.

However, this, too did not happen. As of trade deadline day, Jeffries had $1,984,154 remaining on his $6,883,800 salary; trading him plus $2.5 million to the Sacramento Kings would have gotten the Rockets under the luxury tax, opened up a roster spot, and allowed them to use it to audition others. But it didn't happen. Indeed, no salary dumps did. The trade of Battier and Ish Smith for Thabeet and DeMarre Carroll alleviated some payroll this season, and the Brooks for Dragic swap got them another $40,000 closer. But it wasn't enough and no outright salary dumps were made. Jeffries, the prime candidate for one, stayed put. And because of that, the Rockets's payroll of $71,759,254 puts them a mere $1,452,254 over the luxury tax threshold.

Jeffries has since negotiated a buyout from the Rockets, the details of which are not currently known. But unless he gave up more than $1.5 million, this buyout will not have been enough to get the Rockets below luxury tax territory. If there's a good reason why he was not traded to Sacramento - or even to Minnesota for Telfair, or something of that nature - then I don't know what it is. I'd like to.

The teams projected to be over the $70,307,000 luxury tax threshold in 2010 include Boston ($77.8 million, assuming Sheed got nothing), Dallas ($84.5 million), Denver $83.8 million), Houston ($73.6 million after the Trevor Ariza/Courtney Lee trade), the L.A. Lakers ($91.9 million before Shannon Brown), Orlando ($92.6 million), Portland ($72.8 million) and Utah ($75.3 million). Some of those teams will never get under the tax threshold, and some of them won't try. But some will, and even those that don't make it will probably pawn off excess salary onto the teams with cap space they're otherwise struggling to use. Here are some such dumps that I'm officially predicting, apart from the ones that I'm not.

3) Jared Jeffries or Chuck Hayes or something (although probably Jeffries)

- Before yesterday's four way trade that saw them move Trevor Ariza for Courtney Lee, and before the dump of David Andersen onto Toronto, Houston were about $10 million over the luxury tax threshold. After those moves, they're now about $3.2 million over it. They also currently have 16 players, eight of whom are big men, and only two of whom can play point guard. The unguaranteed contracts of Mike Harris and Alexander Johnson are easy enough to cut, yet they save only $1.7 million and are not enough to get Houston under the luxury tax. Cutting those two, as well as trading Chuck Hayes for no returning salary, would achieve this. Yet Hayes has done nothing to deserve to be salary dumped; at $2 million for one season, he represents good value for the amount he contributes. Jeffries's $6.8 million expiring will be harder to dump, but it's possible; pairing him with a pick like above and sending him to Sacramento or Washington, or trading him with sweetener (maybe Jermaine Taylor, who was just made redundant by Lee's arrival) to Minnesota for Sebastian Telfair, are all possibilities.

[...] Meanwhile, the Rockets gave up whatever cap space aspirations they made have had with this trade. By taking on the $20,153,325 earned by the Martin/Jeffries/Hill deal, the Rockets are not now 2010 players, but by taking on Kevin Martin, they also don't now need to be. The talent infusion was so substantial that whatever they may have wanted to do with that 2010 money - which was probably very little considering that the plan was to trade McGrady from day 1 - is now not significant. And the picks as well? Bonus.

[...] But some teams did make it under. As described earlier, Washington have joined New Orleans in making it under after their three deals, and they are joined by Houston. The Rockets were taxpayers until this week after spending their two MLE's worth of dough over the summer, and although the insurance payments on Yao Ming's contract numb the pain a bit, it was still less than ideal. However, one further bonus for the Rockets in the Kevin Martin trade was the $4 million payroll drop this season alone. Even with Jared Jeffries's trade kicker. Therefore, with that one move, they've acquired a star player, a useful youngster, a first round draft pick, a right to swap that may prove hugely beneficial, and about $10 million this season in saved salary and rebates. All for the cost of an inactive list player, a small amount of cap space they weren't intending to use anyway, and their backup power forward.