How Much Money Would You Spend on Cavs' Restricted Free Agent Rodney Hood?
Nearly three weeks into free agency, Cleveland Cavaliers shooting guard Rodney Hood remains without a contract.
The 25-year-old split last season between the Utah Jazz and Cavaliers, averaging 14.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and shooting 42.9 percent from the field and 38.1 percent from three. He started 23 of his 60 games, averaging 26.9 minutes a night.
The Cavs can match any offer the restricted free agent receives or negotiate a contract on their own. With fellow restricted free agents Jabari Parker and Marcus Smart now off the board, Hood is the best free agent remaining outside of Houston Rockets center Clint Capela.
Hood should entice a number of teams. He has tremendous size for the shooting guard position (6'8", 206 pounds) and has improved his per-minute scoring every year. His three-point shooting this season (38.1 percent) was also a career high. His play slipped a bit in Cleveland, where his role was inconsistent. He was dropped from the rotation altogether for part of the postseason before averaging 12.5 points and 7.0 rebounds in the last two games of the NBA Finals.
His value now is difficult to predict.
While Hood looked like he was heading for a big payday before the trade to the Cavs (16.8 points, 38.9 percent three-point shooting, 15.1 PER), his stats plunged in Cleveland (10.8 points, 35.2 three-point shooting, 12.7 PER). In an odd moment, Hood refused to play at the end of a blowout playoff win against the Toronto Raptors when head coach Tyronn Lue called him. He later apologized to his teammates and coaching staff.
Still, given his age, size and the NBA's love of wing players, Hood will cash in somewhere, but for how much?
Teams Interested
The Cavaliers should be the favorites here, given that Hood is restricted and Cleveland has already lost enough talent this summer.
JR Smith doesn't have a future on a rebuilding Cavs team, meaning the starting shooting guard job should be up for grabs. Cleveland also has to replace LeBron James' 27.5 points a night from last season, and Hood's best attribute is scoring.
Don't assume the Cavs will match any deal Hood receives, of course.
Despite losing James and his $35 million in paychecks, Cleveland is still over the salary cap and only $14 million short of paying repeater luxury tax. According to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com, majority owner Dan Gilbert "will not want to pay anything in tax penalties" now that James is gone.
Gilbert paid more than $50 million in tax money alone this past season and $150 million overall the past three years. To get out of the repeater tax, Cleveland has to stay below the luxury-tax line for the next two seasons. Even if Hood signs a deal for $14 million, the Cavs still have two more roster spots to fill and won't be able to use their $5.8 million trade exception from the Kyrie Irving deal.
Before the start of free agency, Jordan Schultz of Yahoo Sports reported that the New Orleans Pelicans were a contender for Hood, likely due to their lack of wings. Hood's recent "likes" on Instagram show there may be mutual interest. New Orleans is over the cap, however, and used its entire $8.6 million mid-level exception on Julius Randle.
Outside of Cleveland and New Orleans, Vardon said on the Wine and Gold Talk podcast that the Sacramento Kings and Houston Rockets could be interested in Hood as well.
The Rockets could offer their full taxpayer mid-level exception for Hood of $5.3 million, but that would be an easy match for the Cavaliers.
Instead, it's Sacramento that can make the best play for Hood.
The Kings are the only remaining team with significant cap space and can offer Hood up to $20.5 million per season. That seems outrageous until you remember Sacramento already signed Zach LaVine to a four-year, $78 million offer sheet before the Chicago Bulls matched.
If the Kings don't throw $15 million or more per season at Hood, what do they do with that money? The Rockets seem intent on matching any offer that Capela receives. The only other notable free agents left are Dwyane Wade, Michael Beasley, Greg Monroe, Jamal Crawford and Nick Young. Wade is either staying with the Miami Heat or retiring, and the remaining players seem primed for minimum deals.
Outside of Hood and Capela, there's no one left for the Kings to spend their $20 million on. For Cleveland, that's scary.
Player/Contract Comparisons
Any good sports or real estate agent knows the value of a good comp.
Hood's agent, Travis King, should be pleased by some of the deals handed out to the shooting guard class this summer.
The highest-paid comp is LaVine, 23, who secured his annual $19.5 million with the help of Sacramento's cap space. Returning from a torn ACL, LaVine averaged 16.7 points on only 34.1 percent three-point shooting in 24 games. Hood has a little less potential, but he's fully healthy and a better outside shooter.
The lowest-paid comparison, and one that Cleveland will gladly point out, is Joe Harris, who inked a two-year, $16 million deal with the Brooklyn Nets. The 26-year-old averaged 10.8 points and shot 41.9 percent from deep.
Some other players that match up similarly with Hood's age, scoring and position include 25-year-old Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (one year, $12 million with the Los Angeles Lakers), 27-year-old Will Barton (four years, $53 million with the Denver Nuggets) and 27-year-old Avery Bradley (two years, $25 million with the Los Angeles Clippers). All will make between $12 million and $13.3 million annually over the life of their new deals.
While Hood's market value should be in the medium comp area of $12 million, it's likely he'll get significantly more or less.
If a team offers Hood its $8.6 million mid-level exception, Cleveland can match and still be about $5.5 million under the tax. Only the Kings can offer Hood a deal that the Cavaliers cannot match and stay tax-free, meaning he'll likely either be signed at the mid-level number or get a huge $14 million-or-more-per-year offer from Sacramento.
Whatever happens, it appears Hood won't be signed at his market value. Sacramento can essentially determine Hood's next contract, making it up to Cleveland to match.
Greg Swartz covers the Cleveland Cavaliers and NBA for Bleacher Report. Stats provided by NBA.com and Basketball Reference unless otherwise noted. Contract numbers by Spotrac.
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