Rockets Rumors

Rockets Notes: Anderson, J. Johnson, D’Antoni, Anthony

After re-signing Clint Capela, the Rockets are doing more than waiting for the inevitable addition of Carmelo Anthony, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. In comments relayed by Houston-based digital journalist Ben DuBose, Windhorst says the Rockets remain “active in the trade market” and are talking to several teams about deals to improve their defense.

After reaching the Western Conference finals last season, Houston suffered a pair of serious hits in free agency when Trevor Ariza signed with the Suns and Luc Mbah a Moute decided to rejoin the Clippers. Both were tall, rangy wing defenders who enabled the Rockets to match up with the Warriors’ collection of perimeter scorers. Houston found one replacement by signing former Piston James Ennis and is apparently seeking more.

Windhorst indicated that the Rockets are willing to absorb long-term salary in order to find a taker for Ryan Anderson, who is owed nearly $41.7MM over the next two seasons.

There’s more NBA news from the Lone Star State:

  • Joe Johnson was a forgotten man for the Rockets in the playoffs, but he isn’t ready to end his NBA career, writes Kelly Iko of RocketsWire. The 37-year-old free agent hopes to play at least one more year and is already preparing for the coming season, Iko adds. Johnson, a 17-year veteran, signed with the Rockets in February after reaching a buyout deal with the Kings shortly after they acquired him from the Jazz. He played in 23 games for Houston, but was barely used in the postseason. The Rockets may not have room to bring Johnson back, with 14 players under contract and Anthony expected to join the team once his buyout with the Hawks is complete.
  • Coach Mike D’Antoni is dismissing critics who believe the Rockets will take a step back because of their free agent losses, relays Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. “You hate to lose Trevor and you hate to lose Luc,” D’Antoni said. “It happens. That’s the business part of it and we’ll miss them. But at the same time, it gives opportunities to other guys. … We’re moving along. It’s changed but we’re trying to make it for the best.”
  • Anthony will be most effective in Houston as a better version of Anderson, states TNT’s David Aldridge in an NBA.com roundtable on the subject. With Ariza and Mbah a Moute gone, Aldridge advises the Rockets to use Anthony as a starter to maximize his offense and provide another threat from 3-point range.

No Options Included In Capela's Deal

Clint Capela‘s new five-year contract with the Rockets on Friday, initially reported to be worth $90MM, is technically guaranteed for $80MM with $10MM in incentives, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets. Those annual incentives include $1MM for reaching the Western Conference finals, $500K for finishing with a 30% defensive rebounding rate, and $500K for shooting at least 65% from the free throw line, according to Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post (Twitter link).

Harden: Carmelo Would Fit In With Rockets

James Harden isn’t worried about Carmelo Anthony fitting in with the Rockets, Michael Lee of Yahoo Sports reports. Anthony, who was traded by the Thunder to the Hawks in a salary dump, is expected to join Houston once he clears waivers. Anthony stated this week that he never really fit in with Oklahoma City’s roster but Harden believes he’ll do just fine in the Rockets’ high-powered attack. “Everybody in the world knows what Carmelo brings, how gifted and talented he is, and he still has a lot more to go,” Harden said.  “If he comes to Rockets, we’ll bring the best out of him, and I’m sure he’ll bring the best out of us as well. We all know how easy Melo scores the basketball. … Things aren’t always going to be perfect but as long as you have that communication, good things will happen.”

Harden offered more insights on a variety of topics:

  • He feels the Most Valuable Player award gives him validation after starting out with OKC as a sixth man. “I don’t know anybody else who did it. But that’s just a testament to how many guys out there that are coming off the bench, and not getting as much playing time, that you could still be that guy. It feels great, all the work that I put in, to be able to hold that trophy up.”
  • He’s motivated by the Rockets’ heart-wrenching series loss to the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals after being up 3-2: “It’s on my mind every day. It’s Game 6, Game 7, that’s what drives me every day.” 
  • Despite Golden State adding DeMarcus Cousins, he’s confident the Rockets can knock the Warriors off their perch. “If you don’t get better in this league, you get passed up pretty quick. We’re not done. But what we have right now is for sure good enough.”
  • He gives a big thumbs up to the Rockets and center Clint Capela agreeing on a $90MM extension, Ben Golliver of Sports Illustrated tweets. “Obviously we love the game of basketball but to be able to provide for your family for generations, that’s what we do it for. I’ve seen him work his butt off these last few years. He listens, learns, competes. I’m happy for him.”

Clint Capela Signs Five-Year Deal With Rockets

4:48pm: The signing is official, Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports tweets.

3:14pm: The Rockets and free agent center Clint Capela have reached an agreement on a five-year, $90MM contract, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Having entered the offseason among 2018’s top free agents, Capela was one of the last impact players still unsigned, as well as one of the final restricted free agents still on the market.

The terms of Capela’s new deal look similar to Houston’s reported offer from earlier this month. During the second week of free agency, we heard that the Rockets had offered their starting center a five-year, $85MM deal that could be worth up to $90MM in incentives.

It’s the second mega-deal that the Rockets have agreed to in July. In the early hours of free agency, the team struck a four-year, maximum-salary deal to re-sign point guard Chris Paul. Since then, Houston has seen Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute sign with new teams, but has added James Ennis and lined up an agreement with Carmelo Anthony.

While Capela’s new contract will fall short of the $100MM he was reportedly seeking, it looks like a very fair deal, considering no team had the cap space left to make a comparable offer. Capela’s first massive NBA payday comes in at a rate of $18MM per year, allowing the Rockets to lock up a young, improving center for the long term without having to worry about him accepting his qualifying offer and bolting as an unrestricted free agent in a year.

Prior to officially signing Anthony and Capela, the Rockets have nearly $118MM in guaranteed salaries on their books. Capela’s big raise will push that total well beyond the $123.733MM luxury tax line, setting up Houston to be a taxpaying team for the 2018/19 season, barring major cost-cutting moves.

Capela, 24, has made substantial strides in each of his four NBA seasons, evolving from a little-used rookie in 2014/15 into one of the league’s most productive centers this past season. In 2017/18, he averaged a double-double (13.9 PPG and 10.8 RPG) while contributing 1.9 BPG and a league-leading .652 FG%. Although Capela’s offensive game is somewhat limited, he’s an effective screen setter and finisher at the rim, and provides the Rockets with strong rim protection at the other end of the court.

According to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (via Twitter), Capela’s five-year contract will include no team or player options.

With Capela off the board, Rodney Hood (Cavaliers) and Patrick McCaw (Warriors) are the only two NBA restricted free agents who remain on the market.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Hartenstein Has First-Year Guarantee

  • Isaiah Hartenstein‘s three-year contract with the Rockets is fully guaranteed next season, has a partial guarantee the second year, and a non-guaranteed third year, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets. The 7-footer, a 2017 second-round selection, signed the contract on Wednesday after playing in the G League last season. He posted averages of 10.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG, and 2.3 BPG in four summer league games with Houston earlier this month.

Carmelo Anthony: OKC Wasn’t A Good Fit

While awaiting to clear waivers, Carmelo Anthony admits he never really fit in with the Thunder last season, Jemele Hill of ESPN’s The Undefeated reports.

Developing chemistry with Russell Westbrook, Paul George and his other Oklahoma City teammates proved to be a difficult task for Anthony. Following a disappointing postseason in which he averaged 11.8 PPG and 21.4% from long range, Anthony publicly complained about his role.

The Thunder managed to trade his contract to the Hawks, a transaction that was made official on Wednesday. He’s expected to join the Rockets once Atlanta officially places him on waivers and he clears that process.

Anthony claims OKC didn’t do enough to help him make the transition after the Knicks dealt him.

“I think last year — and I haven’t talked about this before — everything was just so rushed, going to the team for media day and the day before training camp. Them guys already had something in place, and then I come along in the 25th hour like … Melo just come on and join us,” he told Hill. “Like, you can figure it out since you’ve been around the game for a long time. That’s why it was so inconsistent. At times, I had to figure it out on my own rather than somebody over there or people over there helping me.”

Anthony isn’t comfortable with the notion of getting waived but his family convinced him that he was better off going through the process to get into a better situation. He also had to waive his no-trade clause to make it happen.

“I had a conversation with my wife and family. I said to them, I’m not taking no buyout. I’m not getting waived. And they said, at the end of the day, nobody is going to know that,” he said. “You have to do what you have to do. It’s going to be a blip on your radar. It’s on to the next chapter. It took me a while to get to that point where I’m like, OK, I’m going to accept it.”

Anthony wouldn’t confirm he’ll join forces with Chris Paul and James Harden and reunite with former Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni but he hinted at it.

“I think everything is trying to get cleared right now. I’ll let the people do what they do,”he said. “I just sit back and when the time comes, and the call gets made, we’ll make that move.”

Rockets Sign Isaiah Hartenstein

5:56pm: The signing is official, the Rockets announced on their website.

3:32pm: Hartenstein will receive a three-year contract, signaling that the Rockets will use a small portion of their mid-level exception to complete the signing, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).

3:17pm: The Rockets will finalize a deal with draft-and-stash prospect Isaiah Hartenstein today, according to Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston (Twitter link). We heard last week that Houston was looking to reach an agreement with its 2017 second-round pick.

Hartenstein, 20, had a strong showing for the Rockets during this year’s NBA Summer League after playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers – Houston’s G League affiliate – last season. Having averaged 9.5 PPG, 6.6 RPG, and 1.1 BPG in 38 games for the Vipers in 2017/18, the seven-footer posted 10.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG, and 2.3 BPG in four Summer League games earlier this month.

Before being selected 43rd overall in the 2017 draft and heading to the G League, Hartenstein played with Lithuanian club Zalgiris Kaunas, where he helped lead the team to a seventh straight Lithuanian Basketball Club title.

Terms of Hartenstein’s deal aren’t yet known. A minimum-salary agreement seems likely, but the Rockets could go up to three years if they decide to dip into their mid-level exception rather than using the minimum salary exception.

Hartenstein will be the second draft-and-stash prospect to sign an NBA contract this month. Jonah Bolden of the Sixers was the first.

Anthony To Hawks, Schroder To Thunder In Three-Team Trade

JULY 25: The three-team trade involving the Thunder, Hawks, and Sixers is now official, according to a series of press releases. The deal took several days to finalize because the clubs had to complete a few other roster moves first, including Philadelphia signing Jonah Bolden earlier today.

Upon being released by the Hawks, Anthony intends to sign with the Rockets.

JULY 19: The Thunder and Hawks have agreed to a trade that will send Carmelo Anthony and a protected 2022 first-round pick to Atlanta, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). According to Wojnarowski, Oklahoma City will receive Dennis Schroder in the deal. Royce Young of ESPN adds (via Twitter) that the 2022 first-rounder will have 1-14 protection, and will turn into two second-rounders if it doesn’t convey in ’22.

The Sixers will also be involved in the trade, according to Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, who tweets that Philadelphia will acquire Mike Muscala from Atlanta and will send Justin Anderson to the Hawks. The 76ers will also deal Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot to Oklahoma City, Vivlamore adds (via Twitter).

Upon acquiring him, the Hawks will waive Anthony, Wojnarowski adds. That will free up the veteran forward to join whatever a new team when he clears waivers, and the Rockets remain the strong frontrunners to land him.

We heard rumblings earlier this week about discussions between the Hawks and Thunder involving Anthony, Schroder, and Muscala, so it seems those two teams were able to find common ground, with the Sixers entering the mix as well. Here’s how the deal looks for each of the three teams involved:

Oklahoma City Thunder:

It has been nearly two weeks since word broke that the Thunder intended to part ways with Anthony, but the team resisted waiving him outright. Doing so would have reduced his $27.93MM cap charge to just $9.31MM, significantly reducing the club’s luxury-tax bill for 2018/19, but it would have added dead-money cap hits worth $9.31MM for the next two years as well.

By trading Anthony and a future protected pick and taking back Schroder and Luwawu-Cabarrot, the Thunder will reduce their 2018/19 team salary and projected tax bill substantially while also adding a productive point guard in Schroder. The 24-year-old, who averaged 19.4 PPG and 6.2 APG last season, figures to assume a role similar to the one Reggie Jackson previously had in Oklahoma City.

According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Thunder GM Sam Presti and coach Billy Donovan were granted permission to speak to Schroder before the deal was agreed upon, and both Presti and Donovan are “enthusiastic” about the fit. Oklahoma City had been seeking more speed and another ball-handler, Woj notes.

Still, there’s a reason Schroder was available. There are on-court questions about his shooting and defense, and off-court concerns about his character and his legal issues. Schroder was arrested on a misdemeanor battery charge last September, with Georgia officials recommending in March that he be prosecuted for felony aggravated battery. He’ll face discipline from his team and/or the league when that case is resolved, but the Thunder appear to be banking him avoiding a more serious sentence.

As for the specific tax figures, by my count, the Thunder will now have a team salary of about $148.74MM with a projected tax bill just over $88.75MM. Prior to the deal, those numbers sat at about $160.97MM and $157.75MM, respectively. While Oklahoma City’s tax outlook for 2018/19 has improved, the Thunder will have to be wary about increased penalties in future seasons after adding Schroder’s $15.5MM annual salary through 2020/21. They’ll likely deal with that when the time comes though.

It’s worth noting that a lengthy suspension without pay for Schroder could further reduce the Thunder’s team salary and tax hit in 2018/19. A suspension would also reduce the likelihood of the point guard earning the $2MM in unlikely incentives included in his contract, though not all of those bonuses are tied to individual performance, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes.

Finally, the Thunder will create a traded player exception worth $10,883,189 in the deal. They’ll have a year to use it.

Atlanta Hawks:

The Hawks had been determined to move Schroder for much of the offseason, and drafting Trae Young and acquiring Jeremy Lin made Atlanta’s former starting point guard even more expendable. Despite his solid production, Schroder had a slew of on- and off-court question marks, as detailed above, and he was drafted and extended by Atlanta’s previous front office — general manager Travis Schlenk never seemed particularly attached to him.

By moving Schroder ($15.5MM) and Muscala ($5MM) for Anthony ($27.93MM) and Anderson ($2.52MM), the Hawks take advantage of their remaining cap room — they’re able to take back significantly more salary than they sent out as a result of that space.

Atlanta won’t get any real immediate help out of the deal, but the club will create future cap flexibility by clearing Schroder’s three remaining years from its books — both Anthony and Anderson are on expiring deals, and Carmelo will be waived shortly. According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), he’ll get his full $27.93MM salary from the Hawks. That was certainly agreed upon prior to the completion of the deal, since Anthony had a no-trade clause and could’ve vetoed the move if he thought Atlanta would ask him to give back money in a buyout.

The Hawks will also acquire a 2022 first-round pick, which they’ll receive as long as Oklahoma City is a playoff team in ’22 — otherwise, it will become two second-rounders. The Stepien rule, which prevents teams from trading consecutive future first-rounders, meant that the Thunder would have had a hard time dealing an earlier first-round pick, since they’d already sent their top-20 protected 2020 first-rounder to Orlando.

Philadelphia 76ers:

While the Sixers’ involvement in this deal may seem extraneous, it’s a nice bit of business for Philadelphia. In Muscala, the team will acquire a big man capable of knocking down outside shots — he’s a career 37.8% three-point shooter and made a career-best 1.2 threes per game in 2017/18.

The Sixers thought they’d acquired a player who fit that role earlier in the offseason when they reached an agreement to sign Nemanja Bjelica, but Bjelica backed out of his deal with the team, leaving Philadelphia seeking a replacement. Muscala is a solid fallback plan, and is on an expiring contract, meaning he won’t compromise the team’s future cap flexibility.

In order to acquire Muscala, the Sixers only had to surrender Anderson and Luwawu-Cabarrot, a pair of players who seemed unlikely to have regular rotation roles for the team in 2018/19. The move will also help the 76ers clear out a roster logjam, as the team had 16 players under contract and was still believed to be considering bringing over draft-and-stash prospect Jonah Bolden. Following the deal, the Sixers are back down to 15 players on NBA contracts, not including Bolden or 2018 second-rounder Shake Milton.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Capela Negotiations Appear To Be Progressing

Rockets CEO Tad Brown sounded an optimistic note regarding negotiations with restricted free agent Clint Capela, Marc Berman of KRIV tweets. While much of the talk surrounding the Rockets in recent days has been focused on the possibility of signing Carmelo Anthony, Capela is a more important piece. He’s the only player on our list of the top 10 free agents this summer who hasn’t signed a contract. Brown believes that will change quickly.

“We love Clint. Clint is a big part of our team…We are very hopeful we’re going to get something done very soon,” Brown told Berman. “I know (Rockets GM) Daryl (Morey) and (Clint’s) representatives are working on that every day.”

Carmelo Anthony Plans To Sign With Rockets

Veteran forward Carmelo Anthony plans to sign with the Rockets once he officially becomes a free agent, two people with knowledge of his plans tell Marc Stein of The New York Times. According to Stein, Anthony is expected to finalize a one-year, minimum-salary contract with Houston.

Anthony is still technically a member of the Thunder, but a three-team trade that would send him to Atlanta has been agreed upon and should be made official at some point in the coming days. The Hawks would waive the 34-year-old after acquiring him, clearing the way for him to join the Rockets 48 hours later, once he clears waivers. Due to his $27.93MM salary, there’s no chance of Anthony being claimed off waivers by another team.

While Anthony reportedly drew interest from the Heat and possibly the Lakers too, the Rockets have long been considered the frontrunners for his services. Houston lost a pair of forwards in free agency earlier this month when Trevor Ariza headed to the Suns and Luc Mbah a Moute agreed to a deal with the Clippers.

Anthony isn’t exactly a three-and-D wing like Ariza and Mbah a Moute are, but he’ll provide the Rockets with another scorer to complement James Harden and Chris Paul. In his first and only season in Oklahoma City, Anthony averaged 16.2 PPG and 5.8 RPG with a shooting line of .404/.357/.767.

Asked on Friday about the possibility of teaming up with Anthony, Harden expressed enthusiasm about the idea, as Matt Young of The Houston Chronicle details.

“It would be a great acquisition for us,” Harden said. “Melo’s a proven vet. He just wants to win at this point, so it would be great for him to be on our team. The current roster we have now, we’ve got good guys back and we keep making forward progress.”

For Anthony, joining the Rockets will mean reuniting with Mike D’Antoni, who previous coached the 10-time All-Star in New York. The two men had a rocky relationship during their time together with the Knicks, but recent reports have indicated that D’Antoni welcomes the chance to coach Anthony again, having made it clear during a meeting earlier this month that the circumstances would be much different this time around.

By signing Anthony to a minimum-salary contract, the Rockets will retain their $5.34MM taxpayer mid-level exception. While there may not be many free agents left who are worth using that exception on this summer, it could come in handy during the season if there’s a player Houston likes on the buyout market.

Although the Rockets aren’t technically into luxury-tax territory yet, they’re expected to blow past that threshold when they eventually re-sign restricted free agent Clint Capela. At that point, using their MLE or adding salary in other ways would become exponentially more expensive unless the Rockets can shed salary in another move.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.