Luc Mbah a Moute only played one season with the Rockets, but he admits it’s going to be an odd feeling when he faces his former teammates tonight, relays Mirjam Swanson of The Daily Bulletin. Mbah a Moute came to Houston as a free agent last summer at the urging of Chris Paul, then returned to the Clippers over the offseason after receiving a one-year, $4.3MM offer.
“It’s always, always [weird],” said Mbah a Moute, who has been with six organizations in his 10-year career. “Especially that team, we had a really good team and a chance to do something special, so it’s going to be weird, but I look forward to it.”
Mbah a Moute provided a strong defensive presence off the bench for the Rockets. He averaged 7.5 PPG and shot .364 from 3-point range, but a late-season shoulder injury limited his effectiveness in the playoffs.
There’s more NBA news from the Lone Star State:
- Carmelo Anthony seems like an uncomfortable fit with a Rockets team that emphasizes 3-point shooting, and a look at the stats shows he will have to change his game to be effective in Houston, according to Ben Alamar of ESPN.
- The future the Mavericks envision was on display in Saturday’s win over the Timberwolves, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. First-round pick Luka Doncic had 26 points and six rebounds, while last year’s star rookie, Dennis Smith Jr., poured in 19 points, including the game-winning shot. “Hey, if that was a peek at the future, it’s looking good,” said J.J. Barea. “Great win. And you see Luka. He just plays the game. And Junior, he had foul trouble, stuck with it and made the big shot. He took a tough shot and made it. They’re tough.”
- DeMar DeRozan has adapted quickly to his new situation with the Spurs, relays Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express News. DeRozan had a difficult time changing teams after nine seasons in Toronto, but he’s averaging 28.0 PPG through his first two games with San Antonio. “He’s absorbed everything we’ve given him so far, knowing full well it’s a new system,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “It will take some time for him to feel totally comfortable, but he’s highly intelligent. It’s the NBA, it’s not rocket science so he’s picking it up pretty quickly.”
- Former Spurs forward DeJuan Blair is back in the organization after being drafted by Austin in Saturday’s G League draft, McDonald adds in the same story.
The Rockets are stupid for not bringing back Ariza and Luc smh.
Definitely agree, and I have absolutely no clue whatsoever what the heck they were thinking replacing Ariza with Carmelo..lol..
James Ennis wasn’t a bad pick-up, but he’s certainly no Trevor Ariza..Btw, the Ariza signing is already paying huge dividends for Phoenix. Ariza is averaging 14 points, ~6 rebounds, and 4 assists per game; however, Ariza’s value isn’t solely in his counting stats. Ariza and Ayton have helped anchor the Suns defense, and Ariza has been an excellent mentor on and off the court for Josh Jackson and TJ Warren as well..
Anyways, back to the Rockets idiocy…One of the main reasons they were so successful last season was due to their excellent mixture of toughness, defense, and of course their ability to hit from deep. What they apparently failed to realize was their solid defense, and their ability to get defensive stops, that is what really allowed Houston the opportunity to jack up so many threes..
If Mr. Morey doesn’t make a move to help out his roster re-infusing the Rockets with more toughness and a defensive-minded role player or two, then, I’d honestly consider him a legit moron….Which, to be clear, I know he is not, or well, for their sake, hopefully he responds accordingly..
I can see them not matching Ariza’s $15MM, but Moute’s $4.3Mm? If only for the sake of continuity, an easy choice to match.
Jimmy Butler can fix it…
For what it’s worth, the Rockets couldn’t have offered Mbah a Moute $4.3MM without using their mid-level exception. They do have $4.5MM left on that MLE though, so it would’ve been doable.
Melo is cancer. The rockets will soon be sick and eventually dead..