The deal
Nets get: Guard K.J. McDaniels
Rockets get: Cap space
Brooklyn Nets: B
McDaniels getting traded reminds me that two years ago at the deadline, Sixers Twitter was apoplectic that Philadelphia dealt him as a rookie to Houston in exchange for Isaiah Canaan and a second-round pick (subsequently used to take Richaun Holmes), not unlike this year's Nerlens Noel panic.
Way back then, McDaniels seemed to have a bright future as a 3-and-D wing. With the benefit of hindsight, his hot shooting early in his career was a total fluke. McDaniels has settled in at 29.2 percent for his career, and since the Rockets re-signed him to a three-year, $10 million deal the next summer, he's failed to win a spot in the rotation.
I'm still inclined to believe McDaniels' length and athleticism give him a chance to be a contributor, so using an open roster spot (after waiving Marcus Thornton, acquired in yesterday's trade with the Washington Wizards) on him seems like a reasonable use of the Nets' cap space. Brooklyn can evaluate McDaniels for the remainder of the season before deciding on his $3.5 million team option for the 2018-19 season.
Adding McDaniels brings the Nets almost to the salary floor for this season, a small bonus of the deal.
Houston Rockets: B
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, the Rockets dumped McDaniels' salary to clear cap space for the buyout market. Houston was basically right at the cap before this move, so the team will now have McDaniels' $3.3 million salary available to offer free agents -- enough to outbid other contenders for available free agents.
Among the top four teams in both conferences, only the Boston Celtics (who have a prorated $1.7 million portion of their room exception remaining, per HeatHoops.com) can also offer a free agent more than the minimum. (The Utah Jazz, currently fifth in the West, have some $13-plus million in remaining cap space.)
It remains to be seen exactly who might shake loose via buyout and be interested in joining the Rockets, but given McDaniels wasn't playing anyway and they were sure to decline his team option, it's a solid gamble for Houston.