July 13th, 7:03pm: The signing is official, according to a team press release. “Drew has been an important part of our success the last two years and we are pleased to welcome him back,“ said team president Ernie Grunfeld. “His skills, leadership and outside shooting will continue to add value to our front court rotation.“
JULY 11TH, 6:01pm: The deal is for two years and $6MM, with a $3MM non-guaranteed salary in year two, according to former Nets executive Bobby Marks (on Twitter).
JULY 9TH, 5:56pm: The Wizards have reached an agreement to re-sign unrestricted free agent Drew Gooden, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter link). The deal is for one year, $3.3MM, David Aldridge of TNT tweets.
Gooden appeared in 51 contests for the Wizards last season, averaging 5.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.0 assist in 16.9 minutes of action per game, His slash line was .399/.390/.773. His career numbers through 13 NBA seasons are 11.3 PPG, 7.3 RPG, and 1.2 APG, with a shooting line of .464/.269/.760.
The 33-year-old will likely see an uptick in his minutes next season with Kevin Seraphin expected to depart via free agency. Gooden had expressed his desire to return to Washington back in early June. “I would love for it to be here but if it is not, this is a business and I can swallow that pill too,” Gooden said of his future. “So we will see what happens.” The big man made more than $1.4MM this past season.
Gooden will be able to veto any trade this year, since he-resigned with the team on a one-year deal. He’d lose his Bird rights if he approved any swap.