Nene Back On Free Agent Market

12:08pm: The Rockets remain optimistic that they’ll be able to work something out with Nene, tweets Spears. Houston could increase its offer to Nene by using part of the mid-level exception rather than his Non-Bird rights.

11:38am: Upset at the prospect of losing one year – and approximately $4MM – from his initially-reported agreement with the Rockets, Nene is “back at square one” in free agency, reports Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter links). According to Spears, the market for the veteran center is back open.

JULY 1, 9:36am: The Rockets’ deal with Nene will actually only be for three years, since the team can’t sign him to a four-year deal with his Non-Bird rights due to the over-38 rule, says Bobby Marks of ESPN.com. Nene’s three-year contract figures to be worth $10,954,440, which is the maximum allowable using his Non-Bird rights.

Albert Nahmad (Twitter link) was among the cap experts to point out late last night that Nene’s reported agreement appeared to be in conflict with the over-38 rule.

JUNE 30, 10:16pm: The Rockets have agreed to a four-year deal with Nene, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. The deal is said to be worth $15MM, Feigen notes.

Despite rupturing his groin in the postseason, the 34-year-old veteran fully expected to return to the Rockets. Now with Chris Paul on board and speculation that there could be further deals in the works, the franchise will presumably delight in the opportunity to add a cheap option that’s already familiar with the organization.

Adding context to the deal is Zach Lowe of ESPN who tweets that it looks as though the Rockets used Nene’s Non-Bird rights. That means the franchise will retain its mid-level and biannual exceptions for further moves.

In 67 games for Houston last season, the greybeard posted 9.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.

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