Houston Rockets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Spears On Sixers, Camby, Bobcats, Jordan

July 16th, 2013 at 9:57pm CST by Alex Lee

Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports relayed a string of news items for us on Tuesday night, which range from the Sixers never-ending coaching search to the Bobcats front office. Let's take a look at the latest from Spears:

The Sixers have received permission to interview Miami assistant David Fizdale for their coaching vacancy, Spears writes. We know the team has interest in Ed Pinckney, Adrian Griffin and Melvin Hunt, as well as in-house candidate Michael Curry and C's assistant Jay Larranaga, but this is the first mention of Fizdale and Philly in more than a month.
The Raptors are expected to buy out the final two years on the contract of Marcus Camby, who came over to Toronto in the Andrea Bargnani deal, tweets Spears, who lists the Clippers, Bulls and Rockets as teams with interest in the veteran center. Camby is still owed about $7.5MM through the 2014/15 season.
The Bobcats have promoted Larry Jordan, the older brother of owner Michael Jordan, to team director of player personnel, Spears writes. Larry's previous job title was team director of special projects, and he now takes over a job that has been vacant for three years, according to Spears. He will report to his brother, as well as team president Rod Higgins and GM Rich Cho.

Point Guard Rumors: Tinsley, Jazz, Mo Williams

July 16th, 2013 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld has passed along a few tidbits of free agent information related to the point guard market this morning, so let's round up the highlights….

The Mavericks, Rockets, Bobcats, and Suns have all expressed interest in signing Jamaal Tinsley, tweets Kennedy.
Tinsley spent last season in Utah, but after reaching an agreement with John Lucas III, the Jazz are no longer interested in bringing back Tinsley, according to Kennedy (Twitter link).
Mo Williams is considering taking a discount to join a contending team like the Heat or Spurs, says Kennedy (via Twitter). No deal is imminent, but it's one potential option Williams is weighing.
Earlier today, we heard that the Suns may have put Kendall Marshall on the trade block.

Rockets Sign Omri Casspi

July 16th, 2013 at 9:23am CST by Chuck Myron

JULY 16TH, 9:23am: The Rockets have made the Casspi signing official, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). As Feigen originally reported, it's a minimum-salary pact.

JULY 6TH, 2:58pm: Wojnarowski pegs the value of the deal at $2.6MM, which would make it more than a minimum-salary arrangement. It makes more sense that Casspi would come at the minimum, rather than at a deal that eats into the team's $2.65MM room exception, but we'll see how it shakes out when the deal becomes official after the July moratorium. Wojnarowski also notes that the Rockets became more intrigued with Casspi and his shooting touch after their agreement with Howard.

2:45pm: Casspi's deal is for the veteran's minimum, and the second year is a team option, Feigen tweets. That means a salary of $947,907 this year and $1,063,384 in 2014/15.

2:27pm: Omri Casspi and the Rockets have agreed on a two-year deal, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Houston had been pursuing the 25-year-old former first-round pick since the trade deadline, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle notes (on Twitter). Casspi became an unrestricted free agent when the Cavs declined to offer him a qualifying offer this summer, following a season when it appeared he'd fallen out of favor in Cleveland.

A report during the season indicated the Creative Artists Agency client would head back to his native Israel to play, but it sounds like there was enough NBA interest to keep Casspi stateside. His numbers have been in freefall since his rookie year with Sacramento, when he notched 10.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest. His 4.0 PPG and 2.7 RPG in limited minutes this year were far cries from his earlier production, and his three-point shooting, a strong suit when he was a King, deserted him in Cleveland. Presumably, the Rockets are looking for him to regain his stroke to give James Harden and Dwight Howard more room to score in the paint.

The Rockets appeared to be close to landing Casspi around the March 1st buyout deadline, but their agreement with Aaron Brooks scuttled that idea. Now, Brooks is gone and Delfino is headed to Houston.

Sixers Claim Tim Ohlbrecht, James Anderson

July 15th, 2013 at 8:30pm CST by Zachary Links

The Sixers have claimed Tim Ohlbrecht and James Anderson off of waivers from the Rockets and signed both players to non-guaranteed deals, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The Rockets placed both players on waivers this past Saturday.

Anderson and Ohlbrecht were each about to enter the second year of a three-year minimum-salary deal with the Rockets, but the final two seasons were non-guaranteed in both cases. Philadelphia is a logical landing spot for both players as recently-minted GM Sam Hinkie spent years in the Houston front office. If they make the 76ers, they'll join another ex-Rocket (sort of) in Royce White.

Anderson was the 20th overall pick in the 2010 draft, but the Spurs declined to pick up the third-year option on his rookie-scale contract, making him a free agent last summer. He spent training camp with the Hawks, re-signed with the Spurs early in the season, and wound up with the Rockets in January after San Antonio let him go.

Ohlbrecht was undrafted out of Germany, but Houston picked him up in February in the hopes that the 6'11" center could develop into a frontcourt contributor. Neither he nor Anderson played an integral role for the Rockets this past season.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Odds & Ends: Howard, Bogut, Jennings, Jazz

July 14th, 2013 at 11:30pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's tonight's look around the Association..

With a difficult free agent process behind him, Dwight Howard is ready to begin his new chapter with the Rockets, writes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
Andrew Bogut was on the trading block this summer, and while reports indicated he was upset with his inclusion in rumors, the big man expressed no hard feelings when he spoke with Warriors GM Bob Myers, as Myers tells Lang Greene of HoopsWorld.
Steve Aschburner of NBA.com argues that both the Bucks and Brandon Jennings would be better off if he accepted his qualifying offer. Doing so would give Jennings unrestricted free agency in 2014, and the motivation of a walk year could spur improvement that benefits the Bucks.
Jared Zwerling of ESPNNew York.com (on Twitter) hears from league insiders that play in the Las Vegas summer league is more intense than usual as roster spots and financial flexibility are tighter in this free agent market. Teams seem to be waiting longer to fill out their rosters.
Andris Biedrins, Richard Jefferson and Brandon Rush are heading to the Jazz because they made a transaction work, not because Utah believes they have the potential to get the team further than Al Jefferson, Paul Millsap, Mo Williams, and Randy Foye could, writes Jody Genessy of The Deseret News.

Southwest Notes: Rockets, Mavs, Asik, Lin

July 13th, 2013 at 7:00pm CST by Spencer Lund

The Rockets made a big splash signing Dwight Howard this summer, but now they're left to figure out what to do with Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin, who they offered as part of a sign-and-trade for Josh Smith before he signed with the Pistons.

Rockets general manager Daryl Morey tells Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle that Asik and Lin are "going to be here.” Morey has repeatedly said he doesn't want to move Lin and Asik, but he gave a more detailed reason why to Feigen today:

"The reality is James (Harden) and Dwight (Howard) want to play with Jeremy and Omer,” Morey stated. “I’ve been kicked down to assistant GM. They’re going to be here."

Here's more on the Rockets including an update on Asik's summer plans and updates from the Mavericks…

Feigen also tweets that Asik is in Turkey for national team workouts and will not be with the Rockets for at least a month. He also answers a cap question, via Twitter, that the Rockets have the smaller "room" exception, instead of the full MLE.
Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com tweets that the Knicks don’t think they’re getting Brandan Wright because he’s close to re-signing with the Mavericks.
Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News reports that the Mavericks are nearing a deal for free agent big man Samuel Dalembert.

Nuggets Hire Arturas Karnisovas As Assistant GM

July 13th, 2013 at 4:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Nuggets have reached an agreement with Rockets director of player personnel Arturas Karnisovas to bring him aboard as assistant GM in Denver, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports. Karnisovas will join new GM Tim Connelly with the Nuggets, who've overhauled their front office this summer. The Rockets, too, are enduring changes, having already lost executive vice president Sam Hinkie to the Sixers, where he's the new GM.

Karnisovas joined the Rockets as an international scout in 2008 after a playing career that gave him insight on the landscape in North America as well as overseas. The Lithuanian played collegiately for P.J. Carlesimo at Seton Hall before embarking on a professional career that saw him reach the Euroleague Final Four on three occasions.

The Nuggets lost GM Masai Ujiri to the Raptors this spring, while Pete D'Alessandro, Ujiri's top aide, became the new GM of the Kings. The team also replaced coach George Karl with Pacers assistant Brian Shaw.

Rockets Finalize Deal With Dwight Howard

July 13th, 2013 at 1:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Rockets made it official this afternoon, introducing Dwight Howard at a press conference and releasing a statement on their four-year maximum-salary deal with the big man. The move brings an end to nearly two years of questions about the future seven-time All-Star, who pushed for a trade from the Magic in 2012 and wound up quickly souring on his brief tenure with the Lakers. Throughout the process, Howard often appeared indecisive, and his back-and-forth on the night he made he decision to sign with Houston provided a fitting coda to the affair.

The contract is worth a total of $87,591,270 through 2016/17, more than $30MM less than Howard could have earned in a new deal with the Lakers, though the lack of a state income tax in Texas offsets that difference. The pact includes an option for the final season that will give Howard the choice of leaving in the summer of 2016. Agent Dan Fegan of Relativity Sports was Howard's primary representative as they picked the Rockets over the Lakers, Warriors, Mavericks and Hawks, the other four finalists in the mix for the most sought-after free agent of 2013.

"Dwight is the biggest free agent acquisition in the history of the Rockets," owner Leslie Alexander said as part of the team's statement. "His addition puts us in contention. This is good for the city and especially the fans. Fans are going to have a great time this year. This team will be tremendous fun to watch."

Howard's deal is the second maximum contract on the Rockets payroll, with James Harden's five-year extension kicking in this coming season. Together they'll make $34,214,428 this coming season, or about 58.3% of the salary cap. Still, the team appears to be in the hunt for a third star, reportedly dangling Jeremy Lin and Omer Asik in an effort to sign-and-trade for Josh Smith before he wound up with the Pistons. Morey has insisted he's not interested in letting them go, reiterating that point to reporters today (Twitter link). In any case, the Rockets will be building around Howard and Harden in the years to come.

Rockets Waive James Anderson, Tim Ohlbrecht

July 13th, 2013 at 1:24pm CST by Chuck Myron

Rockets GM Daryl Morey confirms that the team has waived James Anderson and Tim Ohlbrecht, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. The team also renounced its rights to Francisco Garcia and Earl Boykins, Feigen notes via Twitter, but that's just a procedural move in Garcia's case. Renouncing Garcia's $9.15MM cap hold clears space necessary for the Rockets to finalize their other moves this summer before they officially re-sign Garcia to the cheaper two-year, $2.6MM deal they've agreed upon.

Anderson and Ohlbrecht were each about to enter the second year of a three-year minimum-salary deal with the Rockets, but the final two seasons were non-guaranteed for both players, so Houston clears them completely off its books. Anderson was the 20th overall pick in the 2010 draft, but the Spurs declined to pick up the third-year option on his rookie-scale contract, making him a free agent last summer. He spent training camp with the Hawks, re-signed with the Spurs early in the season, and wound up with the Rockets in January after San Antonio let him go. Ohlbrecht was undrafted out of Germany, but Houston picked him up in February in the hopes that the 6'11" center could develop into a frontcourt contributor. Neither he nor Anderson played an integral role for the Rockets this past season.

The Rockets declined their $6.4MM team option on Garcia last month, but the team was still stuck with his hefty cap hold until renouncing his rights today. The team could have made that cap hold disappear simply by formalizing the agreement on Garcia's new contract, but perhaps the club intends to use its cap room to bring aboard Dwight Howard and the rest of its free agent bounty first, and squeeze Garcia's deal in using part of the $2.652MM room exception. The $884,293 cap hold for Boykins, who didn't play in the NBA in 2012/13, was simply a placeholder, so it's no surprise the Rockets renounced him.

Rockets, 76ers Finalize Royce White Trade

July 13th, 2013 at 10:36am CST by Zachary Links

The Rockets and 76ers announced that they have finalized the deal that will send Royce White, the draft rights to Turkish forward Furkan Aldemir, and cash considerations to Philly in exchange for future draft considerations.

White, the 16th pick in the 2012 draft, never appeared in a regular season game for the Rockets because of his battles with the team concerning accomodations for his psychological disorders. He averaged 11.4 points and 5.7 rebounds in 16 games for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston's D-League affiliate.

The move clears White's $1,719,480 guaranteed salary from Houston's books, which helped to give Houston a little more breathing room in an offseason headlined by the signing of Dwight Howard.