Rockets, Rafael Stone Deemed NBA's 'Toughest Negotiators'

Houston Rockets General Manager Rafael Stone has faced major questions during his reign in the big chair. Did the team stick with Kevin Porter Jr. for too long?

Should they have ever even gambled on Porter Jr? Should the Rockets have given the Brooklyn Nets back some of their draft capital?

He's graded well altogether. CBS Sports graded him as the league's fourth-best front office executive last summer also. The same publication is now ranking him third-best, just seven months later. The writer, Sam Quinn, explained Stone’s super power, or biggest strength.

"The Rockets appear to be, by far, the NBA's toughest negotiators. They got Sengun to take less than the max. Dorian Finney-Smith got only two guaranteed seasons from them. Clint Capela took a pay cut and a role reduction to come to Houston. Jabari Smith's deal descends after the first year, making it a bit easier to trade if needed. This is a real point in Rafael Stone's favor. His single best trait as an executive is how effectively he manages contracts."

Now back to the drawbacks. Stone’s draft history has been questioned.

Three players selected by Stone in the first-round of the draft never materialized into NBA players. TyTy Washington, Usman Garuba and Josh Christopher have yet to find a permanent NBA home.
Garuba isn't even in the NBA anymore.

And that doesn't count KJ Martin, who the team traded assets to acquire in the second-round. But the draft is a crap shoot. No player is a sure thing. We always hear the term "can't miss prospect" but that's never a certainty.

As it pertains to Stone’s draft history, he's also had a good amount of hits. Jabari Smith Jr., Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green are all good players. They've all landed extensions, which is the ultimate sign.

Green was the linchpin in Houston's trade for Kevin Durant. Tari Eason, Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard are also all good players.

Last August, Stone was graded as the league's sixth-best General Manager by Yahoo Sports.
Stone has definitely been able to work his magic on the contractual front.

Fred VanVleet's contractual situation wasn't even referenced by Quinn here.
He had a little over $40 million on his deal in 2025-26, which was a player option, and turned it down for a $50 million deal over two years.

(Which is an immense pay cut from an average annual value perspective -- $42.8 million per year in his previous deal with the Rockets, compared to $25 million per year in his new one).
Stone successfully pioneered Houston's rebuild, despite being in his first post as General Manager. Rockets fans are relatively disappointed with Houston's third place standing in the West this season.

Just three years ago, Houston was 22-60. Stone has to get credit for that.