Rockets Rumors

Southwest Notes: Wroten, Pelicans, Grizzlies

December 24th, 2015 at 7:32pm CST by Charlie Adams

The Sixers offered to send the now-waived Tony Wroten to the Pelicans in today’s trade that shipped Ish Smith off to Philadelphia, but New Orleans didn’t have any interest, as Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports passes along (via Twitter). The Pelicans will instead end up with two future second round picks: Denver’s in 2016 and Philadelphia’s in 2017, according to fellow Yahoo Sports contributor Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

Latest On Markieff Morris

December 24th, 2015 at 1:43pm CST by Chuck Myron

1:43pm: Morris issued an apology via Twitter (hat tip to Coro).

“My frustration got the best of me last night,” Morris wrote. “It won’t happen again. I apologize to Jeff. My teammates told me I hit coach with the towel. In no way was that towel intended for him. I just want to help my team win so much. That’s my focus moving forward.”

1:26pm: The Suns have confirmed the suspension (Twitter link), citing “conduct detrimental to the team.” Morris will miss games against the Sixers and Cavs.

1:05am: The trade value of Markieff Morris is such that teams are asking the Suns to attach another player or asset to him in any proposal, tweets Zach Lowe of ESPN.com, using Archie Goodwin‘s name as an example of the sort of add-on other teams want. The Wednesday towel-toss that marked the latest chapter in a back-and-forth relationship between Morris and the Suns has prompted the team to issue an unpaid two-game suspension, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports. It’ll cost him $145,455 out of his $8MM salary, Charania notes. Morris threw a towel in the direction of coach Jeff Hornacek, who tossed it back as the pair engaged in an argument during Wednesday’s game, though Morris told teammates he didn’t mean for the towel, which connected with Hornacek’s leg, to hit the coach, Charania hears.

The Suns are unlikely to agree to give up value on top of Morris in a trade, Lowe says, though the power forward is “very available” on the trade market, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported last week, when he added that talks with the Rockets about trading Morris to Houston, which Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops originally revealed, have been serious. It’s unclear whether the Rockets or another Morris suitor, like the Pelicans, have spoken to the Suns about Goodwin or if Lowe was merely using him as a hypothetical. Goodwin, making about $1.16MM in year three of his rookie scale contract, has only played 41 total minutes in December.

Phoenix has lost three in a row and six of eight, and the Suns are four games in the loss column behind eighth place in the Western Conference. Morris, who backed off a summer trade demand when he showed up at training camp, lost his starting job earlier this month and disappeared from the rotation entirely before re-emerging to average 16.3 minutes per game over Phoenix’s last four contests. All of the Suns players were present for practice today except Morris, who deflected a question last week about whether he wanted to be traded, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link).

What do you think the Suns can reasonably get in exchange for Morris? Leave a comment to share your ideas.

Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround: 12/23/15

December 23rd, 2015 at 11:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Rockets and representatives for Ty Lawson are reportedly working in tandem to look for possible deals that would send the point guard out of Houston, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Houston reportedly wants to keep Lawson, but the point guard’s camp is seeking a way for him to receive more playing time on another team, as was relayed by Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com.

The news that the Rockets are involved in trade discussions involving Lawson represents an apparent change from earlier this month, when Houston was holding off on the idea despite interested teams around the league believing that they’d be able to trade for him on the cheap, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders reported. The level of interest in Lawson around the league is up for debate, with Ken Berger of CBSSports.com noting that there isn’t currently much of a market for the point guard, and teams are likely waiting to see if the Rockets will ultimately waive him.

This brings me to the topic for today: Should the Rockets look to trade Ty Lawson, even if the return is negligible?

Lawson’s contract has him slated to earn $12,404,495 for 2015/16, which will be a difficult salary to trade without taking back a bad contract or two. The only teams currently possessing enough cap room to absorb Lawson’s pact without needing to ship out a significant amount of salary are the Sixers and Blazers. Portland seems like an unlikely fit given the presence of Damian Lillard, so I’d rule them out as a potential landing spot for Lawson. The Sixers certainly could use help in the backcourt, but given Lawson’s off the court troubles, he doesn’t quite fit the bill as the veteran leader the team is looking to add.

The most logical fit for Lawson would be with the Knicks, given the team’s lack of production from the one spot. Lawson’s deal would not necessarily be an issue for the cap space conscious Knicks since his 2016/17 salary is non-guaranteed until either the day after the completion of the NBA Finals or the day after the 2016 NBA draft, whichever occurs later. Matching salaries for this season could be tricky, unless New York is willing to part with Robin Lopez, who could be dealt for Lawson straight up. It’s unclear if Houston would be interested in Lopez, but he could be viewed as a palatable replacement should Dwight Howard depart after this season as a free agent. A package of Jose Calderon and Derrick Williams, two players New York would likely love to part with, would also work salary-wise, though it’s unclear if the Rockets would be willing to take on Calderon, who still has one year remaining on his deal.

No matter which team Houston paired up with on a potential deal, the franchise isn’t likely to receive much in the way of value in return. So what say you? Should Houston look to cut ties with Lawson, no matter what the return? Or should the team hang onto him for the remainder of the season and hope he can pick up his play? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the matter. We look forward to what you have to say.

And-Ones: Howard, Roberts, Jones, Kidd

December 23rd, 2015 at 10:20pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Rockets center Dwight Howard recently turned 30 and hopes he can continue to play in the NBA into his 40s, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle relays. “That’d be fun if I was to play this game [that long],” Howard told Feigen. “That was always my goal, to play 20 years, 20-something years in this league. I’m extremely happy and blessed to have been able to play this game for as long as I have been so far. I have played a lot of minutes. I’ve been doing a lot since I came into the league. I’m thankful. I’m not going to complain about it. I’m happy that I’ve been able to play 12 years so far. A lot of NBA players never played this long so I am very happy and blessed that I’ve been able to play 12 years in the NBA. Hopefully, I can play another 10, but the time I’ve played, I’ve enjoyed it.”

Here’s more from around the league:

Several NBA teams have expressed interest in Raptors preseason cut Ronald Roberts, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv relays (via Twitter). In 10 appearances for the Raptors 905 this season Roberts is averaging 17.9 points and 13.0 rebounds on 67% shooting.
Timberwolves rookie point guard Tyus Jones believes his recent stint in the D-League will help him to contribute more at the NBA level, Jace Frederick of The Pioneer Press writes. “That definitely helped me out and definitely prepared me even more than I was, and it’s just helped my process,” Jones said. “I think it did prepare me a little bit better to help this team out.”
The Knicks‘ trade of J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert to the Cavaliers was a move met with displeasure by the team’s fanbase, but it has worked out well for both sides so far, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. “We made the decision,’’ Knicks coach Derek Fisher said. “It seems like it’s worked out well for both. J.R. and Shump, they seem happy. We like our team as it is at this point. I think our team would be OK if they were here or not because of what [habits] we’re doing every day.’’
Bucks front office officials would have liked to have drafted Bobby Portis with the 17th overall pick this year, but coach Jason Kidd went with Rashad Vaughn instead, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (audio link via Twitter at 57-minute mark). Kidd is calling the shots on personnel, as Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times told us in a recent edition of The Beat. People around the league wonder whether Kidd’s leave of absence for hip surgery is the first step toward him dropping the coaching job and moving into a full-time front office role with the team, Wojnarowski hears.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Bickerstaff, Noah, Smith

December 22nd, 2015 at 10:26pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Rockets point guard Patrick Beverley is a big supporter of interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff and hopes the team plays well enough to nab Bickerstaff the position on a more permanent basis, Mark Berman of FOX 26 relays (via Twitter). When asked what it would mean to him if Bickerstaff was officially named head coach, Beverley said, “Oh, everything. He’s been great. We’re very close. [He] holds everybody accountable. No one’s bigger than the team. Our defensive principles and defensive intensity have definitely gone up since [he became interim coach]. It wouldn’t surprise me if he will be our head coach for years to come. That wouldn’t surprise me. We’re playing for him. Of course we play for ourselves. Of course we play for our family. We’re playing for him, for him to be here and the rest of the coaching staff.”

Here’s more from around the league:

Bulls center Joakim Noah is expected to miss at least two weeks of action due to a sprained left shoulder, according to the team. Noah underwent an MRI today and will be re-evaluated in two weeks, but coach Fred Hoiberg noted that Noah could be out longer than that, Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago relays. “The initial diagnosis, the shoulder sprain and the initial recovery is two weeks or rehab, then he’ll be re-evaluated. That’s what I’ve been told,” Hoiberg said. “Maybe two, maybe four. I just don’t know yet.” The big man is averaging 4.5 points and 8.8 rebounds for Chicago on the season.
Offseason signee Jason Smith has upgraded the Magic‘s bench on both ends of floor, and his strong play has coach Scott Skiles thinking about expanding Smith’s role, John Denton of NBA.com writes. “I always felt like he was a very good team defender and we felt like in a solid defensive system he’d be very good,’’ Skiles said of Smith. “He’s really protected the rim for us and he’s been very good at moving around and communicating. He’s been very valuable for us.’’

Southwest Notes: Howard, Lawson, Green, Barnes

December 22nd, 2015 at 12:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff called recent trade rumors surrounding the team “noise” and untrue, but he’s nonetheless thankful for them because he feels they’ve brought the locker room together, observes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Corey Brewer, ineligible to be traded until January 15th but already reportedly one of the subjects of talks with the Suns, pointed directly at rumors surrounding Dwight Howard.

“You just laugh,” Brewer said, according to Feigen. “It was easy to blow it off. C’mon. Everybody knows Dwight is not unhappy. He comes in here every day smiling. He’s joking around. Him and James [Harden], I don’t see any animosity. We’re just like, “Whatever.’ We didn’t pay any attention. We’re trying to win games.”

See more on the Rockets amid the latest from the Southwest Division:

Ty Lawson‘s minutes have been dwindling and the Rockets are reportedly cooperating with his representatives to try to find a new home for him, but he told Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston today that, “More than anything I just want to be in the mix with the team” (Twitter link).
Danny Green has shot poorly from the outside this season, and Gregg Popovich has berated him on the sidelines, as he is wont to do, but Green isn’t thinking about his offense or feeling pressure from the four-year, $40MM contract he signed in the offseason, as Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News details. “You’re expected to perform every night at a high level on any team when they sign you to a contract like that,” Green said. “But on this team, not so much. We’re all playing together. We’re all playing well. Pressure? Not as much as you think it is, especially here [where] they make it easy and encourage you. Just keep playing. Keep shooting. Keep doing what you do.”
Trade acquisition Matt Barnes has proven an asset during a season of uncertainty for the Grizzlies, as Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal observes in his Pick-and-Pop column. Now a starter, Barnes is rebounding and hitting 3-pointers at better rates than Jeff Green is, Herrington notes. Both Barnes and Green are poised for free agency at season’s end.

Rockets Explore Ty Lawson Trades, But Market Slow

December 22nd, 2015 at 11:16am CST by Chuck Myron

DECEMBER 22ND, 11:16am: Teams around the NBA have little interest in trading for Lawson, league sources tell Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Some speculate that Houston will ultimately waive Lawson, Berger hears, though other sources who spoke with the CBS scribe cast doubt on that notion.

12:29pm: The Rockets want to keep Lawson, but the point guard’s camp is seeking a way for him to receive more playing time on another team, a source tells Watkins (Twitter link).

DECEMBER 18TH, 12:10pm: The Rockets and representatives for Ty Lawson are working in tandem to look for possible deals that would send the point guard out of Houston, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. The NBA is poised to give Lawson a two-game suspension that stems from a recent legal resolution related to a 2014 DUI charge, Wojnarowski also reports. Lawson was also arrested on DUI charges this past July, an it’s possible that the league will ultimately hand down a separate suspension related to that, tweets Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com.

The news of Houston’s engagement in trade talk involving Lawson represents an apparent change from earlier this month, when the Rockets were holding off on the idea even as teams around the league were of the belief that they’d be able to trade for him on the cheap, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. Lawson said he was on board with interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff‘s decision to remove him from the starting lineup last month. Bickerstaff has said time and again that it was a priority for the team to help him return to his usual high level of play, and that he believed Lawson would ultimately achieve that, but his playing time has continued to dwindle, notes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). Lawson has registered fewer than 20 minutes in each of his past three games and, as Feigen points out, he’s totaled only 11 points in the team’s seven games thus far in December (Twitter link). He’s averaging just 5.9 points and 4.2 assists in 25.2 minutes per game this season after posting 15.2 points and 9.6 assists in 35.5 minutes per contest last season with the Nuggets.

The client of Happy Walters gave up the guarantee on his salary of more than $13.213MM for next season to facilitate the trade that sent him from Houston to Denver in July. He’s making more than $12.404MM this season in what’s now the final guaranteed year of his contract, though the suspension will cost him $225,536 out of that figure.

The Rockets, with a disappointing 13-14 record, are in a difficult position as they consider trades, since they’re less than $2MM shy of a $88.74MM hard cap they imposed upon themselves when they signed second-round pick Montrezl Harrell. Houston has three small trade exceptions, one of which expires Saturday, though it would be difficult for the team to use them, since the Rockets can’t add much salary. Today is the last day teams can trade for players and still be eligible to flip them in a trade that aggregates their salary with other players before the February 18th trade deadline, and the Rockets have paid close attention to the aggregation deadline in recent years.

Which teams do you think of as strong fits for Lawson? Leave a comment to share your thoughts:

And-Ones: Silver, Howard, Bradley

December 21st, 2015 at 10:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The controversial rules regarding intentional fouls will not be changed this season, NBA commissioner Adam Silver told Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post via email. Silver said he wouldn’t take action in midseason to prevent teams from employing “Hack-A” strategies, in which poor free throw shooters are fouled before the two-minute mark of a quarter. But the issue will be revisited when the competition committee meets in July, Silver added to Bontemps, who also conducted a phone interview with the commissioner and touched on a variety of topics.

In other news around the league:

The Mavericks shouldn’t even consider a trade for Dwight Howard, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News opines. Howard’s drama queen act and reputation as a coach killer isn’t worth the risk of bringing him aboard, Sefko continues. The Rockets center is also getting more brittle by the season, so the Mavs should not waste their cap space and trade assets on him, Sefko concludes.
Celtics shooting guard Avery Bradley is currently 20th in steals at 1.6 per game but Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy says that doesn’t measure Bradley’s true impact as a defender. The Celtics force a league-best 17.9 turnovers per game and Van Gundy credits Bradley for making that happen. “It’s a very, very aggressive defensive team,” Van Gundy said. “Bradley and [Jae] Crowder in particular are really aggressive defenders and when they have [Marcus] Smart, that gives them another guy that can really get after you on the defensive end of the floor. Bradley is one of the best pressure defenders in the league and sort of spearheads the whole thing.”
Bulls shooting guard Jimmy Butler does not regret the critical comments he made about first-year coach Fred Hoiberg, John Jackson of the Associated Press reports. Butler ripped Hoiberg for being too soft on his players over the weekend, then met with his coach to discuss his concerns. Butler believes he needs to be more of a team leader, Jackson adds. “[I was] a little frustrated after a loss, yeah, but then again, I put a lot of it on myself now because I have to lead better,” he said. Center Pau Gasol said he doesn’t mind Butler’s comments, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweets. “I think it’s good that certain guys want to take ownership and say, ‘Hey, let’s go,’” he told Johnson.

Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 12/19/15

December 19th, 2015 at 11:30pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Ty Lawson hasn’t impressed in 26 games with the Rockets and if the point guard’s camp has its way, the North Carolina product will be playing for another team before the end of the season. Although Lawson’s trade value has arguably never been lower, he is still a starting-caliber point guard and the Rockets should be able to garner a respectable return if they trade him. So tonight’s shootaround is about finding a new home for the troubled 28-year-old and here’s what I would do if I was sitting in GM Daryl Morey’s chair:

Rumors surfaced earlier in the week that Dwight Howard is unhappy with the current state of the franchise and although the center has since refuted those reports, the team expects him to turn down his player option, which would have paid him slightly more than $23.282MM next season. Signing a 30-year-old center with injury history to a long-term, possibly maximum salaried deal may not be the best option for the franchise, yet neither is losing him to another team in free agency.

The Rockets should attempt to trade both Howard and Lawson and build a new team around James Harden. The Nets were on Howard’s list of suitors when he was pushing for a trade from the Magic back in 2011 and while it’s unclear if Brooklyn remains a preferable destination, GM Billy King has the pieces to make a logical trade.

If Houston sends Howard, Lawson and Corey Brewer, who won’t be eligible to be traded until January 15th, to Brooklyn for Joe Johnson and Brook Lopez, who also isn’t eligible to be traded until January 15th, both teams would be better off, even if the Rockets have to include another reserve in the deal to make the salaries align. The Nets would get a new face of the franchise in Howard and a talented point guard in Lawson, who could play beside Jarrett Jack to give the Nets a somewhat exciting backcourt, something they lacked for quite some time. The Rockets would add two proven scoring options to help ease Harden’s burden on the offensive end and they would get younger at the center position. Adding Lopez, whose Player Efficiency Rating is 20.49 this season, would give the team an All-Star whose career is on the same trajectory as Harden’s and they would form a more lethal duo than the Harden-Howard pairing.

The parameters around this trade are purely speculative, as there have been no reports linking the Nets and Rockets in trade discussions.

Be the Rockets’ GM tonight. Let us know what you would do with Lawson and Howard if you were running Houston and tell us what you think about this hypothetical trade. Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the matter. We look forward to what you have to say.

Southwest Notes: Howard, Leonard, McGee

December 19th, 2015 at 3:45pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Though he acknowledges that center Dwight Howard is unhappy with the current state of the Rockets, interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff refutes any notion that Howard is a disruptive influence in the locker room, Sam Amick of USA Today writes. “Since I’ve taken over [for fired coach Kevin McHale], I’ve tried to spend a lot of time with Dwight,” Bickerstaff told Amick. “And Dwight’s mind, his heart, are in the right place. He’s about the right things. Dwight wants to win. He wants to play the right way. He wants to contribute to winning, obviously at a high level. So for me, that’s all I can go on. I trust Dwight. He hasn’t misled me at any point since I’ve known him, since I’ve been working with him. So I can’t hang any value to what other people are saying.”

“I know he’s frustrated, I’m sure,” Bickerstaff continued. “[But] I don’t see him as a guy who’s looking to take the easy way out. … He has been there to perform through all of it. He’s been hurt. He’s been battling the knees, the back, all those things, and never once has he let on that he didn’t want to be a part of it or he was going to take the easy way out. I think he needs to have a bigger role, but I think it’s a combination of how we get him to that point. I’ve got to do a better job of getting him the ball in positions where he can score.”

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard isn’t surprised by his ascent to NBA stardom, because he knows just how hard he worked to get his game to its current level, Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com writes. “I worked hard,” Leonard said. “It’s my fifth year. It’s not just about what I did this summer, it’s about the experience I had under my belt for the past four years. It just comes with a mindset. There are a lot of guys that stay in the gym and don’t get any better. It’s about being smart, figuring out your weaknesses and not being scared to do it in the games.“
Despite not seeing much action for the Mavericks as he makes his return from injury, center JaVale McGee remains an important piece for the team given its lack of rim protecting big men, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. “He’s not 100% of the player he was before the injury just because he hasn’t had a training camp and he hasn’t had a significant amount of time since being cleared,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “Matchups are part of it with everybody playing smaller. It’s just a little trickier getting him minutes.“

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