NEW YORK: Fred VanVleet bet on himself, and the Houston Rockets are the beneficiaries. On an opening night of free agency where most big names — Kyrie Irving, Draymond Green, Khris Middleton, Kyle Kuzma and more — stayed put, VanVleet is headed to a new home.
He agreed to a three-year deal Friday with the Rockets that’ll pay him about $130 million, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press.
ESPN first reported the agreement between VanVleet and the Rockets. VanVleet — who famously uses the phrase “bet on yourself” to describe his career trajectory from undrafted player to NBA champion with the Toronto Raptors — will make about $525,000 per game over the next three seasons.
That nearly matches what he made as a rookie in Toronto, total — about $550,000. “Love seeing guys getting paid,” Boston star Jayson Tatum tweeted.