Trevor Ariza cashes in on a one-year deal from the Phoenix Suns

The Phoenix Suns use up their cap space and put a big dent into the Houston Rockets plans by signing Trevor Ariza.

Trevor Ariza used a strong season in Houston to get himself paid when free agency opened. Yahoo’s Shams Charania reports that Ariza has agreed to a one-year deal with the Phoenix Suns. The deal will pay him $15 million.

Wait, what?

The Suns had plenty of cap space to spend and were unlikely to land a big free agent because, well, they are the Suns. They not only finished last in the league in terms of record, they were dead last in offense and defense. Ariza could have taken lesser money for a competitive team, but at 33 years old, he wanted to cash in. With limited money on the market this offseason, who can blame him?

Ariza averaged 11.7 points on 36 percent shooting from three for Houston last season. This is a big blow to the Rockets, who were one game away from advancing to the NBA Finals. Ariza had been an important glue guy in Houston for the past four seasons. He not only defended multiple positions, he was a reliable shooter and scorer on a team that relied heavily on role players knocking down shots.

It’s likely Houston would have wanted to keep Ariza, but there’s no way they could offer him $15 million. They not only have $65 million tied up in James Harden and Chris Paul, they’re still paying Ryan Anderson $20.4 million to sit on the bench. Plus, they’ll have to spend money to keep restricted free agent Clint Capela this offseason.

Next: NBA Free Agency 2018 Tracker: Latest rumors, trades and signings

With the Suns young core, Ariza comes in as a veteran voice and leader. If he’s happy not playing playoff basketball, more power to him. At $15 million, I can’t say I blame him.