The grass is always greener after a playoff elimination, and the Jalen Green situation in Houston is no different, with one NBA juggernaut poised to profit.
The second-seeded Rockets, back in the playoffs for the first time since 2020, were eliminated by perennial playoff nemesis Golden State Warriors in seven games in the first round.
While Green led the Rockets in scoring during the regular season, averaging 21 points across all 82 contests, his 13.3 points-per-game playoff performance was polarizing, to say the least.
With questions swirling about Green’s future in Houston after his playoff disappointment, one franchise has emerged as the betting favorite to land Green, and it’s one intimately familiar with a 2025 first-round exit.
Western Conference Rival Favored To Land Jalen Green
The Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated in five games by the Minnesota Timberwolves, and it’s clear LeBron James and Luka Dončić will need more help if the former returns for a record 23rd season. According to Bovada, the Lakers are the favorite to land Green if he doesn’t return to the Rockets next season.
The Lakers are the favorites to land Jalen Green if he’s not with the Rockets next season, per @BovadaOfficial
Los Angeles Lakers: +2000
New York Knicks: +2500
Miami Heat: +2800
Los Angeles Clippers: +2800
Golden State Warriors: +2800
Boston Celtics: +3300
OKC Thunder: +5000… pic.twitter.com/bQyzePaFgX— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral)
While the Lakers aren’t flush with cap space, such a storied and valuable franchise seems to be a magnet for talented players. The Lakers were valued at $7 billion last year, making them the third-most valuable NBA franchise—$1.3 billion ahead of the fifth-place Rockets.
Having James and Dončić, acquired midseason in a stunning trade with the Dallas Mavericks, doesn’t hurt that valuation, and adding the youthful Green could bring even more firepower from Texas to California.
The No. 2 pick in 2021 from the G League Ignite program, Green signed a multi-year extension with the Rockets that kicked in following the expiration of his rookie contract.
After a $12.5 million cap hit in 2024-25, Green will make an average of $35.1 million per year in three years between 2025 and 2028. The contract includes a player option for the 2027-28 season, when its $36 million cap hit would occupy 19.24% of the league salary cap.
Green shot just 37.2% from the field in the first round and 29.5% from deep in his first postseason action, a steep drop from his 42.3% field goal and 35.4% three-point slashes during the season.
READ: Rockets HC Ime Udoka Makes Feelings Clear on Jalen Green’s Abysmal Playoffs Series vs. Warriors
He also shot just 67% from the free throw line after shooting 81.3% from the line during the regular season. Green had a 38-point outburst in game two but scored fewer than 10 points in four of the series’ seven games, ending the disappointment with a seven-point game and an eight-point elimination game.
The Rockets don’t necessarily need to shoot for the stars after an impressive, youth-driven 52-30 season. But if they do, and Green winds up elsewhere, it could be the star-studded Lakers reaping the reward.