The strong expectation is that VanVleet will remain with Houston after the strong leadership he provided to a team that unexpectedly won 52 games and snagged the No. 2 seed in the West, but pushing the option back to the brink of free agency does leave open the possibility that the Rockets could include VanVleet’s monster 2025-26 salary in a significant trade if such a deal materialized around the draft. The more likely scenario is that the Rockets decline the option and re-sign VanVleet to a new multiyear deal at a lower annual salary to create some useful wiggle room in relation to the league’s luxury tax aprons.