THURSDAY, 4:39pm: Sessions is unlikely to end up with the Rockets, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. There’s only limited interest in a deal, Feigen says, though it’s not entirely clear whether he’s referring to the interest of the Rockets, the Bucks, Sessions, or some combination of the three.
MONDAY, 12:56pm: Free agent point guard Ramon Sessions and the Rockets have mutual interest, and Houston has spoken with the Bucks about the possibility of a sign-and-trade that would bring Sessions to the Rockets, reports Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter links). Still, no deal is imminent, Kennedy cautions. Houston has only the $2.077MM biannual exception to give Sessions any more than the minimum salary after spending its mid-level exception on Kostas Papanikolaou and Nick Johnson, but a sign-and-trade would allow the Rockets to give Sessions a better deal.
The Bucks renounced their rights to Sessions last week, but they’re still allowed to send him out in a sign-and-trade. It’s not immediately clear what they’re seeking, but perhaps they’ll look to acquire draft assets, given their rebuilding efforts after last year’s league-low 15 wins. If so, the Rockets could accommodate them without having to send out any salary, using part of the nearly $8.4MM trade exception to take on Sessions at a salary greater than they could offer if they signed him outright.
The market for Sessions appeared to have gone cold not long after Kennedy reported in July that three teams reached out to the 28-year-old within the first hour of free agency. The Bulls were among those showing interest, while there were conflicting reports about whether the Hornets were also in that group. The idea of returning to Charlotte, where he spent most of the last two seasons before the deadline trade that sent him to Milwaukee, intrigued Sessions this spring. Still, with Kemba Walker, Brian Roberts and Jannero Pargo in tow, it doesn’t appear as though there’s room for Sessions on the Hornets.
The Bucks picked up Jerryd Bayless and Kendall Marshall this summer to go with Brandon Knight and Nate Wolters, putting a similar squeeze on the point guard position in Milwaukee. The Bucks have 15 players with guaranteed deals plus Marshall, who figures to play a key role, so it’s possible that they envision sending at least one rostered player Houston’s way in a sign-and-trade.
Sessions, a client of Jared Karnes, balances shaky shooting with a knack for earning trips to the free-throw line, as Cray Allred of Hoops Rumors noted when he examined the seven-year veteran’s free agent stock. He’s coming off a two-year, $10MM deal he signed after having been one of the marquee acquisitions at the 2012 trade deadline, when he went to the Lakers, so it’s not altogether surprising that he’s generating strong interest, even at this stage of free agency.