Houston Rockets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Latest On Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum

July 25th, 2012 at 9:43pm CST by Chuck Myron

9:43pm: SI.com's Chris Mannix suggests the Magic, who league executives believe are determined not to cave into Howard's demands, may prefer to wait to make a move until after January 15th, when trading for Brook Lopez once again becomes a possibility. That would give the Magic a chance to see how Lopez has healed from his broken foot, Mannix says.

8:59pm: The Magic didn't really try to convince Howard to stay in today's meeting, as Hennigan simply saw it as an opportunity to build trust, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel reports. Hennigan and the other Magic officials didn't talk to Howard about their head coaching search, Robbins adds. (Twitter links). The Magic expected Howard to reiterate his trade demands, however, and the team isn't deterred from its plan, ESPN.com's Chris Broussard reports via Ramona Shelburne (Twitter link).

8:41pm: Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com has details on the meeting between Howard and Hennigan, reporting that Hennigan, just hired this summer to replace Otis Smith, expressed a desire to get to know D12, while Howard wanted to see his plan for improving the team and was disappointed not to find out about it during the hour-long meeting. Hennigan told Howard he didn't have any trade in the works and wasn't sure how to respond to what Howard was telling him. Other teams are getting frustrated with the Magic's half-hearted attempts to trade Howard, and Wojnarowski reports the Magic are looking for strong package in return, similar to what the Nuggets got for Carmelo Anthony (Twitter link).

8:29pm: The Mavs are the "overwhelming favorite" to sign Howard if he winds up in free agency next summer, Wojnarowski hears, adding that Howard's camp has consistently warned the Rockets not to trade for him, with the threat of moving to their in-state rivals (Twitter links).

8:26pm: Chris Mannix of SI.com hears Howard would be open to re-signing with the Lakers after the season (Twitter link). Howard expressed his curiousity to Hennigan about why the Magic didn't make a trade while other stars, like Joe Johnson and Steve Nash, were on the move, Wojnarowski tweets.

8:19pm: Dwight Howard, in his meeting with Magic GM Rob Hennigan and Magic officials, gave the team three options: an immediate trade to the Lakers, a midseason trade to the Nets, or a clean break next summer, Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM tweets.

Meanwhile, Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak has left the door open to trading for Dwight Howard, writes Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Shelburne hears the Lakers' stance hasn't changed, as they still believe a year with the Lakers would convince Howard to re-sign with the team next summer even if he's unwilling to make a long-term commitment to the team now. Still, the Lakers are unwilling to take on other lucrative deals the Magic want to include in a Howard trade. Shelburne also reports that Andrew Bynum's agent, David Lee, says he has not spoken with Kupchak about an extension for his client, refuting Kupchak's comments to the contrary.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports hears that the fact the Magic have waited so long to pull the trigger on a deal has hurt their offers (Twitter link).

7:55pm: Howard reiterated to Hennigan tonight that he doesn't want to stay in Orlando, and said he'll leave as a free agent next summer if the Magic refuse to trade him, Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com reports. Still, Hennigan is in no rush to move Howard without "acceptable compensation" in return (All four Twitter links).

Rockets Sign White, Jones, Lamb

July 25th, 2012 at 4:03pm CST by Luke Adams

4:03pm: Jeremy Lamb has also signed his rookie deal, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston (Twitter link). Assuming he signed for the full 120%, the 12th overall pick will earn $2,020,200 in his rookie season.

3:46pm: A pair of Rockets first-round picks, Royce White and Terrence Jones, have signed their rookie contracts, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). The team's other first-rounder, Jeremy Lamb, is expected to sign in the coming days.

With Houston exploring a variety of roster moves this offseason, including trying to trade for Dwight Howard, it made sense that the team's three first-round picks had yet to sign. Now that White's and Jones' deals are official, their first-year salaries will officially show up among Houston's 2012/13 commitments. As the 16th and 18th overall picks, White and Jones will likely be in line for salaries of $1,645,440 and $1,485,000, respectively.

The two rookies are also ineligible to be traded for 30 days now, though if the Rockets wanted to include them in a deal for Howard or another player, the team could reach an agreement and then finalize the deal after that 30-day period.

Rockets Sign Omer Asik

July 24th, 2012 at 2:48pm CST by Zachary Links

2:48pm: The Rockets have officially added Asik, the team announced in a press release.

11:58am: The Bulls have officially declined to match Asik's offer sheet with the Rockets, tweets Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com. As a result, Houston will land Asik for three years and $25.1MM. Like Jeremy Lin's contract was, Asik's cap hit will be spread evenly across the three years, rather than being severely backloaded.

JULY 24TH, 11:27am: The Bulls will officially announce later today that they won't be matching Asik's offer sheet, says K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.

Free Agent Rumors: Landry, Thomas, Mason

July 24th, 2012 at 2:20pm CST by Luke Adams

A few more free agents have come off the board today, as A.J. Price and Pablo Prigioni finalized deals with the Wizards and Knicks respectively, while Ronnie Brewer was among the players to agree to a new contract, reaching a deal with the Knicks. With a number of available players still on the market though, here's a round-up of a few of the day's assorted free agent rumors:

The Hornets have renounced Carl Landry's Bird Rights, making a sign-and-trade difficult to work out, writes Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld. The Bobcats were interested in a sign-and-trade deal for Landry, but New Orleans would need to get back under the cap to have room to make it work.
Malcolm Thomas, who was named to the All-Summer League team, is drawing interest from a number of teams, including the Clippers, Bulls, Hawks, and Bobcats, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
Former Lakers second-rounder Patrick Beverley is seeking an NBA job, having worked out for the Bulls, Cavs, and Rockets this offseason. Agent Kevin Bradbury tells Scott Powers of ESPNChicago.com that he thinks his client would be a good fit in Chicago: "He plays defense and does what’s asked of him. He fits the Bulls’ system. I think that’s intriguing for the Bulls. He really respects [Tom Thibodeau]."
The Wizards have interest in bringing back Roger Mason, but Mason isn't looking to sign a one-year, minimum-salary deal, says Michael Lee of the Washington Post. The veteran guard has also received interest from the Thunder, Hornets, Bulls, and Lakers.

Odds & Ends: Lin, Bulls, Cavs, Nuggets

July 23rd, 2012 at 9:53pm CST by Zachary Links

The craze of Linsanity dominated the pages of Hoops Rumors for several months and extended into the offseason, where the Rockets unexpectedly managed to pry Jeremy Lin away from the Knicks. Lin admitted to Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group that in some ways, the hoopla went to his head. However, Lin believes that he is now well-equipped to deal with the hype and isn't concerned about living up to it in Houston. Here's a look at tonight's news from around the Association..

The Bulls bench has gotten a complete overhaul this summer, writes Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com. Chicago appears set to sign Nazr Mohammed to replace Omer Asik and reached agreement with Marco Belinelli on a one-year deal earlier this evening.
The trade rumors surrounding a blockbuster three-way trade involving the Cavs, Dwight Howard and Andrew Bynum have quieted down, and Bob Finnan of the News-Herald doesn't expect the deal to go down this summer. Meanwhile, the Magic have told rival execs that they might not trade Howard at all.
While some clubs seem to be putting all of their eggs in the basket of landing one or two mega-stars, the Nuggets are busy building a franchise their own way, writes Zach Lowe of Sports Illustrated. GM Masai Ujiri would love to land a top-ten talent, but the team is in position to be competitive regardless. I would argue that the new-look Nets are also following a similar gameplan.

Bulls Notes: Rose, Asik, Belinelli, Gibson

July 23rd, 2012 at 11:43am CST by Luke Adams

In his latest piece for the Chicago Tribune, K.C. Johnson recalls a statement Bulls GM Gar Forman made less than a month ago, on draft night: "Our decisions this summer will be basketball decisions, not financial decisions." Based on the Bulls' moves so far this offseason, particularly with the team on the verge of losing Omer Asik and getting nothing in return, it's hard to argue that finances haven't been strongly considered, as Johnson writes. Here are a few Bulls-related updates from his column:

Derrick Rose will "likely" be out until March, according to Johnson. We'd heard before that Rose probably wouldn't be back until the new year, but if the March ETA is accurate, that would mean the star point guard would miss most of the regular season.
The Bulls still plan to clear major cap space for the summer of 2014 to be a player on the free agent market. Luol Deng's contract will expire that summer, and Carlos Boozer will likely be amnestied by then, leaving Rose and Joakim Noah as the only big investments left on the team's books. If Chicago is hoping to clear enough space for a maximum-salary player that summer, it's a little easier to understand why the club wouldn't want Asik's $14.9MM salary for 2014/15.
Speaking of Asik, the Bulls still haven't officially informed the Rockets of their decision on the center's offer sheet, but league sources tell Johnson that Rockets management believes Houston will land Asik.
The Bulls "appear close" to signing Marco Belinelli, as we heard on Friday. As Johnson points out, spending the bi-annual exception on Belinelli would hard-cap the Bulls at about $74.3MM this season, and with payroll already approaching that figure, I'd be surprised if the team imposed that kind of inflexibility on itself. We'll see if the Bulls can land Belinelli for the veteran's minimum instead.
Extension negotiations for Taj Gibson are "next on the docket" for Chicago, says Johnson.
Johnson adds that one factor to watch this year as the Bulls weigh "basketball decisions" and "financial decisions" is whether the team spends the $5MM trade exception acquired in the Kyle Korver deal.

Poll: Should Bulls Match Asik’s Offer Sheet?

July 22nd, 2012 at 6:32pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier today, it was reported that the Bulls are expected to pass on matching the three-year, $25.1MM offer sheet that Omer Asik signed with Rockets. Houston managed to land the restricted free agent with a gameplan eerily similar to the one they used to ink Jeremy Lin. While the Bulls made it known publicly that they planned on matching any offer, it turns out that the hefty, backloaded deal was too rich for their blood.

Are the Bulls making a mistake by letting the 7'0" center walk? Mark Potash of the Chicago Tribune certainly doesn't think so. Potash writes that the $15MM cap hit that Asik would carry in the final year of the contract would loom over the team and simply wouldn't be worth it for a player who is as offensively challenged as Asik. While the Turkish big man shines in the low post defensively, he averaged just 3.1 PPG in 14.7 minutes per contest which would translate to 7.6 PPG per 36 minutes. Of course, it's hard to imagine Asik seeing that much playing time as he is firmly entrenched as a member of the club's second unit.

Still, even Potash admits that Asik's presence will be missed when the Bulls go head-to-head with the Heat. And while the Bulls found a suitable backup in Nazr Mohammed, it's hard to imagine the club getting similar output from him. It's your turn to weigh in – are the Bulls making a mistake in letting Asik go?

Should The Bulls Match Asik's Offer Sheet?

No 88.50% (1,654 votes)

Yes 11.50% (215 votes)

Total Votes: 1,869

Magic Not In Hurry To Trade Dwight Howard

July 21st, 2012 at 3:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

3:44pm: The Magic hope to have a deal by early August, reports Sam Amick of SI.com (Sulia link).

3:04pm: Magic officials continue to hold out for the best Dwight Howard deal, and are unlikely to trade him in the next few days, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld writes. The Rockets, a major player in trade talks, will be tied up while waiting for the Bulls to decide whether to match their offer sheet to Omer Asik, and it won't be clear what kind of cap space and assets Houston will have available until that situation is resolved, Kennedy says.

The Rockets and Lakers have been forced to bid against each other for Howard, and the Magic will weigh their final offers once the Bulls make their decision on Asik, according to Kennedy. Asik has signed the offer sheet but the Bulls have yet to see it, meaning the three-day period Chicago has to match is not yet under way. Last night, Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio also noted the Magic's patient approach, but heard from an opposing team's GM who said there's no way the Magic can bring Howard to training camp in late September. I'm not sure if that deadline holds much weight, however, since Howard and the Magic already co-existed last season amid plenty of trade speculation, and there's no guarantee Howard's back will be healthy enough to allow him to make the start of camp anyway, though the big man insists he'll be ready for the season.

If Howard is still with the Magic come January 15th, when the Nets can trade Brook Lopez, Newsday's Rod Boone believes Orlando and Brooklyn would reinitiate talks, but obviously much can happen between now and then (Twitter link).

The Magic remain focused on their coaching search in the meantime, which is down to assistants Jacque Vaughn of the Spurs, Michael Curry of the Sixers and Lindsey Hunter of the Suns, Kennedy says. With the second round of interviews complete, Vaughn still appears to be the frontrunner, reports Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, with Hunter the next choice. The next step involves meeting with the DeVos family, the owners of the team (Twitter links).

Celtics Acquire Courtney Lee

July 20th, 2012 at 10:08pm CST by Luke Adams

5:49pm: The second-round picks the Blazers will get are both for 2013, tweets Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. They'll receive the Celtics' own selection, along with the Timberwolves' pick that the C's acquired in an earlier deal. Freeman also passes along word from Blazers GM Neil Olshey, who says he is hopeful Pavlovic will make the team out of camp (Twitter link). Freeman confirms, via Twitter, that the Celtics will send the Blazers cash to cover Pavlovic's salary, which will likely be the veteran's minimum. Pavlovic's 2012/13 contract is non-guaranteed, so he could be waived without the Blazers taking a cap hit, Freeman confirms in an email to Hoops Rumors.

4:05pm: In making their own official announcement about the trade, the Trail Blazers noted that they'll acquire two future second-rounders from the Celtics, rather than just one (Twitter link).

2:12pm: The Rockets have officially announced the Lee sign-and-trade agreement in a press release. Based on the team's announcement and a tweet from Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, the deal looks like this:

Celtics receive: Courtney Lee (sign-and-trade from Rockets)
Rockets receive: JaJuan Johnson, E'Twaun Moore, Sean Williams, Bobcats' 2013 second-round pick (from Celtics), and the rights to Jon Diebler (from Trail Blazers)
Trail Blazers receive: Sasha Pavlovic, second-round pick (from Celtics)

According to ESPN.com's John Hollinger (via Twitter), Lee will earn exactly $5MM in his first year, making his total contract worth the same as the maximum mid-level exception (four years, $21.35MM). The Rockets, meanwhile, are expected to waive Moore and Williams in the very near future. Diebler, the player whose rights Houston receives from Portland, was selected by the Blazers 51st overall in 2011 and spent last season overseas.

Cavs Claim Jon Leuer Off Waivers

July 20th, 2012 at 10:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

10:03pm: The Cavs confirmed their successful waiver claim on the team website.

6:35pm: Zgoda tweets that the Timberwolves didn't put in a claim for Leuer, correcting what he said earlier.

6:02pm: Jon Leuer is headed to Cleveland after being waived by the Rockets earlier this week, reports Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (Twitter link). Zach Lowe of SI.com says the Cavs will simply sign him (Twitter link), but Either way, it appears the 6'10" Leuer will suit up for the Cavs next season, likely on a minimum-salary deal. Zgoda says the Timberwolves also put in a claim, but since the Cavs had an inferior record last season, Cleveland's bid wins out.

The 6'10" power forward averaged 4.7 points and 2.6 rebounds with a 15.3 PER in 12.1 minutes a game as a rookie last season for the Bucks, who traded him to the Rockets as part of a deal for Samuel Dalembert. He was the 40th overall pick of the 2011 draft.