The Rockets' offer sheet for Jeremy Lin — who was cut by Houston in 2011 before spawning Linsanity in New York in early 2012 — approaches $30 million, and makes a lot of sense for a team that has no point guards at the moment. But the Rockets may be playing a long game that isn't really even about acquiring Lin at all.
Rockets’ Jeremy Lin Offer Sheet May Pay Off With Knicks’ Luxury Tax
Yahoo!‘s Adrian Wojnarowski lays some of Houston GM Daryl Morey’s cards on the table:
As one rival GM said: "Houston knows New York will match, but it will be more money for them in the tax distribution in three years."
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) July 6, 2012
That idea, that Houston would throw out offer sheets it knows other teams will have to match because it will drive up prices and make money for the Rockets when luxury tax revenue is redistributed to the league, does pass the smell test for logic.
Of course, there’s a more logical gambit Houston’s likely employing at the same time. Driving up the market for players means forcing teams into tough choices about how they spend their money. But Morey’s “genius” reputation being what it is, the “We’ll make them pay more and they’ll end up paying us more!” explanation is definitely going to be the one fans and observers remember.
For more on the Rockets, head to The Dream Shake and SB Nation Houston.
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