The Houston Rockets have a trade in place for Omer Asik to the New Orleans Pelicans, but there is a chance the deal will not go through as the team is working to sign Chandler Parsons back and trade Jeremy Lin and if it fails, the Rockets may look to trade Asik to the NY Knicks, LA Lakers, Chicago Bulls, Brooklyn Nets or Philadelphia 76ers to clear out cap space.
Asik was one of the most likely players to get traded this offseason, as the Rockets needed to clear out space to sign more free agents and on top of that his contract was massive. According to Pro Basketball Talk, the proposed trade of Asik to the Pelicans could fall through, as the salary cap did not go up as high as many projected and that could change things for the Pelicans and Rockets. PBT reports that the trade was agreed to before the NBA draft with Asik moving for a future first round pick and it was only allowed to be completed once July 10 hit.
Now that the moratorium is over for deals, this one could get held up, as the Pelicans needed to clear cap space to get Asik in under their number. Since the salary cap did not go up as high as expected, the team not may not have enough room for him with the players they have on the roster already, meaning they may need to make another deal to get it done. Pro Basketball Talk writes that the Pelicans needed to clear enough for Asik's salary number of $8,374,646 and now there is some leftover space. The team could potentially move either Eric Gordon or Ryan Anderson, but they are not looking to do that, while Alexis Ajinca could be an option, as he has a $981,084 salary for next season as a backup center.
Asik was a near All-Star two years ago and averaged a double-double, but once Dwight Howard was brought in he was relegated to a bench role. The Rockets now are trying to complete trades for Lin and Asik to clear out cap space and they also are contending with the Mavericks offer sheet to Chandler Parsons. The team has also given a max contract offer to Chris Bosh that he is considering and since they have three days to match the Mavs offer, the clock is ticking for GM Daryl Morey.
The Pelicans were hoping to just move the pick for Asik and now they may have to adjust the deal on both sides to get it done. The Rockets were in on Carmelo Anthony and they tried to woo him to sign in Houston, but he is looking to stay in NY or sign with the Lakers or Bulls. The Rockets now have to decide on what to do with Parsons and also they are waiting on what happens with Bosh. LeBron James is holding up the entire NBA and now the Rockets need to get things done in a fast period to ensure they keep Parsons and if not, he will be a Mav.
