Houston Rockets: Dillon Brooks - 2 years $40 million
The Houston Rockets certainly have had a season to remember. They're going to enter the NBA Playoffs as the No. 2 seed in the West and will be in a position to make some noise. But no matter how this season ends for the Rockets, this is a team that should be excited about their future. One player who may or may not be considered a key part of their future is Dillon Brooks. Even though he's had a pretty strong season this year, there's a chance the Rockets could look to trade him with his value at a high.
Even more so considering he has two years, $40 million left on his contract, it could make sense for the Rockets to utilize that money elsewhere - especially if the whispers are accurate that Houston intends on shopping for a veteran star player this summer. Brooks has had a good year for the Rockets, but his future with the team is far from a certainty at this point.
Indiana Pacers: T.J. McConnell, 4 years, $45 million
The Indiana Pacers have had a strong second half of the season, and I don't really want to be this guy, but is there a chance that T.J. McConnell has emerged as somewhat of an overpaid player for the team? He's due $45 million over the next few seasons and has seen a stark drop in overall offensive efficiency over the last two years of his career. Especially considering the complicated financial decisions that the Pacers will have to make over the next couple of offseasons, trading McConnell doesn't seem like that bad of an idea for Indiana.
McConnell has certainly earned his respect as a Pacer, but if Indiana is looking to cut salary, he could be a natural candidate to be on the way out. Add in the fact that it would probably be fairly easy for the Pacers to trade him, I do believe it's more of a possibility than perhaps most are willing to admit.