For background purposes, head to the Chronicle and read up on Feigen:
Brooks not fretting over lack of extension
Taylor's days with Rockets could be numbered
We'll start with Aaron Brooks, who wasn't offered a contract extension on the same day that the Memphis Grizzlies boldly extended Mike Conley for five years at $45 million. Brooks is the better of the two point guards - clearly - but these are two separate front offices with two separate agendas. And thankfully so.
Let us once again remind ourselves that the Rockets have a policy about extensions. They take their time, they assess their options. Then, when a player's contract reaches its end, they will make a decision on whether or not to extend said player. Brooks is no special case.
I hate to rag on the guy, because while Brooks is woefully underpaid, there's still the issue of defense and size. As much as Brooks can do to overcome his physical limitations, at the end of the day, whoever produces should be rewarded with playing time. Brooks is unquestionably worthy of the starting position, but geez, his defense must improve. And to be honest, it's not solely a size issue. We've seen better from him than what he has shown in the first three games of 2010-2011.
In the end, though, I think he will stick around. It's rarely a good idea to get too picky with point guards. Unless you're Memphis, of course.
Regarding Jermaine Taylor, I think it's safe to say that he probably won't be in a Rockets uniform any time soon.
It's a shame that such a young, exciting, promising player will likely be sent packing, either via trade or as a roster cut. But while the Rockets are in desperate need of size (a gap that will be filled with the signing of Erick Dampier), they can't afford to play with only two point guards, regardless of whether or not Courtney Lee can take the helm if needed. Ish Smith is worth keeping around, both for added depth and for his freaky-crazy passing ability.
Taylor will find a home somewhere. But he's a scorer first, and while he certainly has plenty of bounce off the bench, only a handful of teams can afford to let Taylor take shots in place of starting players or better, more tenured backups. You'll see a Von Wafer-like season out of a score-first shooting guard every now and then, but Wafer capitalized in limited minutes and lucked into a starting role while Tracy McGrady nursed one of those injuries of his. Though Taylor has played well at times when called upon (see: home game vs. Lakers last Spring), nothing about him really forced the Rockets to keep him around.
That said, here's hoping Jermaine tears it up wherever he may land. He's still got plenty of time to hone his skills, and if he can find playing time somewhere, perhaps he'll make an impression and find a permanent home, sort of in the same way that Marcus Thornton did last year with New Orleans.
And, hopefully, he will manage to do what Aaron Brooks did and surpass a fellow athlete with the same name on the Google search order. That's how you know you've made it.