Houston Rockets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Rockets Won’t Re-Sign Jason Terry

July 20th, 2016 at 7:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jason Terry won’t return to the Rockets next season, the veteran point guard said this evening in an interview on Sirius XM NBA Radio (Twitter link). Terry, who will turn 39 in September, said Houston officials told him several days ago that he’s not in their plans for the future.

Terry has spent the past two seasons with the Rockets, primarily as a backup to Patrick Beverley. He appeared in 72 games this season, starting seven, and averaged 5.9 points and 1.4 assists per night. He was a key contributor to the Rockets team that reached the Western Conference finals in 2014/15.

Terry, who made a little less than $1.5MM this season, has been with six teams during his 17-year NBA career. All-Star point guard Isaiah Thomas recently campaigned for the Celtics to sign Terry.

Lawson Hoping To Bounce Back

July 20th, 2016 at 6:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

Ty Lawson feels “overlooked” in free agency and tells Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated the team that signs him is going to get a significant bargain. Lawson says he never really felt comfortable with the Rockets or Pacers last season after being traded away from Denver during the summer. Lawson quickly lost his starting spot in Houston and averaged 5.8 points and 3.4 assists over 53 games. The Pacers picked him up after the Rockets waived him, and he saw just 18.1 minutes per night in 13 games with Indiana. Lawson, whose reputation has suffered after four DUI arrests and a stint in rehab, says he managed to stay clean last season and is ready to prove that he is still an elite player. “It would be big to be back to my old self again,” he said. “Also, it’s not for just me, it’s for my parents. They have had a hard time seeing what I’ve been going through. I know they hear the little comments at NBA games. To make them proud again would mean the world to me.”

Latest On Donatas Motiejunas

July 20th, 2016 at 12:45pm CST by Luke Adams

Donatas Motiejunas is one of just three restricted free agents still on the market, and he spoke to Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston about his status. According to Motiejunas, his agent remains in touch with the Rockets, but he’s also talking to other possible suitors. “There are a couple of teams that still have a lot of interest in me,” Motiejunas said. “I’m not necessarily back (with the Rockets). There are teams that also have a chance to offer (a contract). You never know what’s going to happen, but if it ends up I’m coming back, I’m really happy.”

Rockets Sign Nene To One-Year Deal

July 20th, 2016 at 12:03pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 20: Two weeks after striking an agreement, the Rockets have issued a press release formally announcing their deal with Nene.

JULY 6: The Rockets have agreed to terms with free agent big man Nene, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. According to Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston (Twitter link), it will be a one-year deal for Nene. Wojnarowski adds that it will be worth $2.9MM, meaning Houston is probably using the room exception.

Houston has had an active July so far, striking four-year deals with Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon. With those two agreements, the team added outside shooting and scoring ability, but had yet to land a big man that could help protect the room. Nene should help make up for some of the rebounding and inside defense the Rockets lost when Dwight Howard opted out of his contract and agreed to join the Hawks.

Nene, who will turn 34 in September, has spent his 14-year NBA career so far with the Nuggets and Wizards, having played the last four-plus seasons in Washington. The veteran big man has seen his minutes decline over each of the last couple seasons, from 29.4 in 2013/14 to just 19.2 last year, but he continued to be a solid rotational piece for the Wizards, averaging 9.2 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 0.9 SPG, and a .544 FG%.

Although the Rockets should still have some cap room left, depending on what happens with free agents Donatas Motiejunas and Terrence Jones – and their cap holds – Nene’s reported $2.9MM salary signals that he’ll likely be signed using the $2.898MM room exception that under-the-cap teams receive. That will allow Houston to max out its room under the cap before finalizing Nene’s deal.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rockets Sign Second-Rounder Chinanu Onuaku

July 20th, 2016 at 11:22am CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have finalized a deal with second-round pick Chinanu Onuaku, reaching an agreement on a three-year contract, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Houston used its last chunk of cap room on Onuaku, allowing the team to formalize the signing of Nene using its room exception.

As Bobby Marks of The Vertical tweets, the Rockets had $543,772 of cap room left to spare, and the minimum salary for a rookie is $543,471, meaning the team was able to squeeze in Onuaku with just $301 left over. The team could signed Onuaku to a minimum-salary contract after going over the cap, but such a deal would have been limited to two years. Instead, the former Louisville center receives a fully-guaranteed three-year pact, per Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston (Twitter link).

“It’s a pretty good deal for the kid,” agent Derrick Powell said, according to Feigen. “He’s 19 years old. He has an upside that fits the contract. I think it was important for us because we wanted Houston to commit to his growth. They’re very committed to him. They like him a lot. He’s worked his buns off. He’s very excited about his future with Houston.”

Onuaku, 19, is still raw, but showed plenty of promise during his sophomore season, averaging 9.9 PPG, 8.5 RPG, and 2.0 BPG for Louisville. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com ranked him as the 38th-best prospect in this year’s draft class, and the Rockets made him the 37th overall pick in last month’s draft.

Now that they’re over the cap, the Rockets will be limited to two-year, minimum-salary deals for the other undrafted rookies they’ve agreed to sign, including Gary Payton II, Kyle Wiltjer, and Isaiah Taylor.

Community Shootaround: Western Conference Playoff Teams

July 19th, 2016 at 11:02pm CST by Luke Adams

On Monday, our Community Shootaround discussion focused on 2016’s Eastern Conference playoff teams, as we asked which of those eight clubs is most likely to slide down the standings next season. While the Heat received the most votes, the response was hardly unanimous.

In the Western Conference, however, it seems far more likely that there would be a consensus on which team is in for the biggest slide. The Thunder, after all, lost a perennial MVP candidate in Kevin Durant, and traded a three-team All-Defensive player in Serge Ibaka. The team still has Russell Westbrook on its roster, and was widely lauded for its return in the Ibaka deal, but it’s hard to imagine Oklahoma City as a top-three team and a Conference Finals participant again in the West.

So, as we examine the West’s playoff teams, let’s not focus on which team will slide the most. Instead, let’s discuss which teams’ moves you liked and which ones you didn’t.

The Warriors, of course, made the biggest splash of the offseason when they landed Durant, but is there room for improvement on last year’s 73-win squad, or will it take some time for the team to adjust to its new-look roster?

The Spurs and Clippers have brought back most of their key pieces, but it’s the end of an era in San Antonio, where Tim Duncan has announced his retirement. Adding Pau Gasol to the mix will help, and Duncan had already been surpassed by Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge as the club’s go-to players, but this isn’t the same Spurs team that won a championship just two years ago. As for the Clippers, if their core players stay healthy into the playoffs, there’s still optimism that the team can finally get over the hump, but Chris Paul‘s not getting any younger.

It’s been an eventful summer for the other three Southwest playoffs teams, with the Mavericks bringing in Harrison Barnes and Andrew Bogut while losing Chandler Parsons and Zaza Pachulia. Parsons ended up with the Grizzlies, who also retained Mike Conley with the largest contract in NBA history. The Rockets, meanwhile, saw Dwight Howard walk in free agency, but landed Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon.

Finally, the Trail Blazers, one of 2015/16’s pleasant surprises, have managed to bring back key restricted free agents like Allen Crabbe and Meyers Leonard, and also made a couple more head-turning moves in free agency, adding Evan Turner and Festus Ezeli on multiyear deals.

So what do you think? Did any of the Western Conference playoff teams besides Golden State and Oklahoma City drastically improve or take a step back this offseason? Or will the storyline in the West next year simply come down to the Thunder losing their best player to the Warriors?

Take to the comments section below to share your opinions on the Warriors, Spurs, Thunder, Clippers, Blazers, Mavs, Grizzlies, and Rockets. We look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Rockets Notes: Brown, Bazemore, Free Agency

July 19th, 2016 at 2:12pm CST by Luke Adams

Former NBA guard Bobby Brown, who has spent the last several seasons playing overseas, has been training this summer with James Harden and the Rockets, and there’s mutual interest between Houston and Brown in a vet-camp deal, per international basketball journalist David Pick (Twitter link).
Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com takes an in-depth look at the Rockets‘ summer so far, outlining how Houston ended up landing a day-one meeting with Kent Bazemore, how close the team was to landing Bazemore, and the role Harden played in recruiting Eric Gordon.

Anthony Davis Happy To Team Up With Jones Again

July 17th, 2016 at 8:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

There was never a chance that Dirk Nowitzki would emulate Kevin Durant and Dwyane Wade and leave his long-time team, according to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Nowitzki agreed to a two-year, $40MM deal to stay in Dallas, and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said he never thought the situation would end differently. “Dirk wasn’t going anywhere,” Cuban said. “Dirk and Dallas, Dallas and Dirk, they’re synonymous. I understand and respect why D-Wade did what he did but there was never any doubt [about Nowitzki staying in Dallas], Dirk gets what Dirk wants.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

Durant’s decision to join Golden State benefited the Mavericks, who were able to trade for Andrew Bogut and sign Harrison Barnes as the Warriors worked to clear cap space. Cuban likes the look of his new squad, Washburn writes in the same piece. “Yeah, Golden State south,” the owner said. “Harrison will get a chance to expand his game and [Wesley Matthews] will be fully healthy. Deron Williams, Harrison, Dirk, Andrew, that’s not a bad starting five, and we’ve got some of our guys coming back. So we’ll be all right.”
Jameel Warney is trying to decide whether to attend training camp with the Mavericks or accept an offer in South Korea, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Warney, a three-time America East Player of the Year at Stony Brook, was part of the Mavs’ Summer League team.
The Pelicans‘ Anthony Davis is happy to have Terrence Jones as a teammate again, he said in an interview with Nancy Armour of USA Today on NBA A to Z. New Orleans reached a deal with Jones on Thursday, signing the ex-Rocket for one year at the minimum salary. Houston elected not to submit a qualifying offer to the four-year veteran, making him an unrestricted free agent. ”He’s very physical and he can put the ball on the floor, great slasher and can drive to the basket,” Davis said. ”I think not a lot of bigs can guard him. I think me and him played very well with each other at Kentucky and hopefully we can do it here in New Orleans.”
The Grizzlies will bring former University of Memphis guard D.J. Stephens to camp, new coach David Fizdale said in an interview on NBA.com. The 25-year-old Stephens has three games of NBA experience with Milwaukee in 2014.

Rockets Attempted To Acquire Bogut

July 16th, 2016 at 10:46pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Rockets were willing to make the same deal that Dallas made for Andrew Bogut and the Warriors allowed Bogut to choose which team he wanted to go to, sources tell MacMahon. MacMahon adds that although the Sixers were very interested in acquiring Bogut, Golden State never seriously considered sending the Australian to Philadelphia.

Bogut Was Given Choice Of Trade Destination

July 13th, 2016 at 10:27pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Warriors gave Andrew Bogut the choice of being traded to the Mavs and the Rockets, with the big man ultimately deciding to go to Dallas, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com (ESPN Now link) relays. The Sixers also expressed interest, but Golden State wanted to deal Bogut to a team with more realistic playoff hopes than Philly, the scribe adds.