5-year maximum salary reservation? Is it worth it at 22-year-old Amen Thompson?

That's how it is. Recently, many ESPN reporters Tim MacMahon, Brian Windhorst, and Tim Bontemps talked about the Rockets and their supernova Amen Thompson on the show.

Several famous reporters said that the Rockets' offseason operations this year are all about maximizing the salary space in 2027, including giving Van Vleet a 2-year 50 million contract, Finney Smith's 2027 contract is insured, Jabbarry Smith's contract decreases after 2027, and Adams' contract decreases.

The reason for this operation is not only that the free market has a large number of big-name stars in 2027, but also because a big man's new contract is about to take effect that year. Yes, it is Amen Thompson.

famous reporter Tim Bontemps said: "I guess even if he (Amen Thompson) cannot get the maximum salary, he will be very close to the maximum salary, which will occupy a large part of the Rockets' salary at that time."

Amen Thompson is the No. 4 pick in the 2023 first round. He has the qualification to renew his contract in advance next year's offseason. He can sign a 5-year, $264 million max salary in advance. If the designated rookie clause is met (selected in the Best Team in the 2026-27 season), this contract can even reach $317 million in five years.

Amen? 5 years maximum salary? It sounds a bit crazy, but to be honest, it's not impossible.

Last season was Amen's sophomore season. At the age of 22, he performed very well, playing in a total of 69 games, averaging 14.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.3 blocks, with a shooting percentage of 55.7%, and a real shooting percentage of 60.2%. On the offensive end, although Amen has no projection, he has extremely strong athletic ability, frame rushing ability, empty cutting skills, and finishing ability, so his efficiency can almost be compared with the inside line, and he also has certain operational control ability, and he can occasionally play a guest role as a point guard.

On the defensive end, Amen is even more elite. Not only does he have first-class data on the off-hit cap, excellent judgment, but his reserve requirement ratio is also amazing. Under his interference, his opponent's shooting percentage has been reduced from 46.3% to 40.7%, three-pointers have been reduced from 35.5% to 30.6%, and 10 feet in the inside line have been reduced from 58.1% to 48.7%.

The performance on the defensive end is really excellent. Amen successfully selected for the first team of the best defensive team and ranked fifth in the DPOY vote, surpassing Zubac, Jaren Jr., Antetokounmpo and others. Considering that he is just a sophomore player, this is really rare.

The next playoffs, although the Rockets were tragically defeated by the Warriors in the first round, Amen's performance was really not bad in seven games, averaging 15.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game, with a shooting percentage of 49.4%.

Since it was its first playoffs, Amen did not perform well in the first three games, averaging only 10 points and a shooting percentage of 41%.

But in the last four games, Amen's data increased to 20.0 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.0 blocks, shooting percentage of 54.7%, three-point shooting percentage of 33.3%, and free throw shooting percentage of 80.8%.

This is just the offensive end and defensive end. Amen entangled Curry in the entire series, facing Curry for a total of 150 rounds. Curry only made 11 of 27 shots during this period, scored 34 points, and sent 5 assists and 8 mistakes.

Among them, G5 Tianwangshan, Amen scored 25 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals and 3 blocks in a single game. Curry alone was cut off by Amen as many as 5 times.

Anyone who has watched this round of the series will not doubt how outstanding Amen's defense is. Combined with offense and defense, you can even say that he is the best star in the Rockets' series - even if it is not the best, at least he is the top two. In terms of data, the Rockets' BPM in this round of the series is Shin Kyung + 4.7 first, and Amen + 3.7 second.

At this point, you might as well listen to the outside world's evaluation of Amen.

Curry: People see Amen's potential, talent and desire to win. He is a very fighting player. He will definitely be a tough opponent.

Former teammate Jaylen Green: With Shin Kyung and Amen here, Rockets fans are really worth looking forward to in the next few years. I dare to assert that Amen will not only become a superstar, but will evolve into a monster-level existence.

Jabari Jr.: Amen is the most athletic person on earth, I have never seen him before. I get a little angry when I talk about this because I wonder why I can’t do it?

Jeff Teague: As long as Amen figures out the shooting and learns how to shoot, he will be the top ten players in the league.

Perkins: Amen Thompson may become the best offensive and defensive two-way player in the league in the next two years.

American media Legion Hoops: Once Amen develops three-pointers, the league will be finalized.

Celebrity reporter Sam Quinn: We always say that as long as someone can shoot, he can become the top ten in the future league, but this view (in Amen) is wrong. The correct view is that Amen may have the opportunity to become the top ten in the future league without learning to shoot at all. His physical talent is so special.

You can see that although the second grade season has just ended, whether it is an opponent, teammate, former teammate or media reporter, he has a very, very high evaluation of Amen.

And the next place to improve is also obvious. He already has historical athletic talent, best lineup defense, and ending comparable to the inside. Next, he is to improve his own projection..

This aspect seems simple, but it is really not easy. Many superstars have not practiced reliable shooting throughout their entire career. I hope Amen can become that different existence. As long as he practices shooting, he will have a maximum salary for 5 years? It's simply not too stable.