Houston Bought Motiejunas Upside but Paid With More Than One Asset
Houston’s draft-night deal with Minnesota brought back Jonny Flynn, the rights to Donatas Motiejunas and a conditional 2012 second-round pick. The outgoing package was Brad Miller, the rights to Nikola Mirotic, the rights to Chandler Parsons, a future first-round pick and cash. The Rockets did immediately reacquire Parsons from Minnesota in a separate cash transaction, so his later Houston career should not be counted as Minnesota’s long-term gain from this exchange. Even after removing that shortcut, the original package was broad enough that Houston needed more than one useful player to justify the price.
Motiejunas Became the Best Direct Houston Return
Motiejunas developed into a real rotation big for Houston. Basketball-Reference credits him with 44 games as a rookie, 62 in 2013-14 and 71 in 2014-15, when he started 62 games and averaged 12.0 points. Flynn did not provide a comparable return: he appeared in only 11 games for the Rockets before Houston moved him to Portland in the Marcus Camby trade. The 2012 second-round pick from Minnesota went to Portland in that same deal and became the No. 40 selection used on Will Barton. Houston therefore extracted value, but most of it came from Motiejunas.
Minnesota Converted the Draft Assets Again
Minnesota’s side was not primarily about Brad Miller’s playing time. Miller appeared in only 15 games for the Timberwolves. The more important pieces were the draft assets: Minnesota moved Mirotic’s rights to Chicago on the same night, sold Parsons’ rights back to Houston for cash and retained the future first that eventually became the No. 26 pick in 2013. Minnesota later packaged that pick, used on Andre Roberson, with Malcolm Lee in a trade with Golden State. Those moves did not create a single star for the Wolves, but they gave the franchise more usable asset branches than the Miller contract alone suggests.
The Grade Gap Should Stay Modest
This was not a disaster for Houston. Motiejunas became a legitimate contributor, and the front office later recycled Flynn and the second-round pick into the Camby transaction. Minnesota also failed to turn every incoming piece into lasting on-court production. The difference is that Houston surrendered multiple draft assets plus Miller and cash to acquire a package whose direct NBA return centered heavily on Motiejunas. Minnesota preserved more optionality and later trade value across several branches, which supports a Wolves edge without treating Parsons’ Houston career or Roberson’s Oklahoma City career as Minnesota production.
Final Verdict
Wolves Win — Houston C, Minnesota B+. Donatas Motiejunas became a useful Rocket and gives Houston a credible return, but Jonny Flynn lasted only 11 games in Houston and the acquired second-round pick was later sent to Portland. Minnesota received Brad Miller plus several draft assets, immediately converted Mirotic and Parsons into other value, and retained the future first that became the No. 26 pick in 2013 before trading that asset again. The gap is not enormous because Minnesota did not turn the package into a franchise cornerstone, but the broader asset return and Houston’s limited payoff outside Motiejunas make the listed B+ and C grades defensible.