Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala nearly left the franchise to join the Houston Rockets in free agency this summer, but a last second phone conversation and meeting between the two sides saved the day.
ESPN’s Chris Haynes gave a behind-the-scenes perspective in a fantastic article on how his free agency period played out, detailing how some were under the impression Iguodala was Houston-bound until the final minute. Iguodala and his camp were floored by the stunning presentation delivered by Rockets guard Chris Paul, general manager Daryl Morey and others:
The two sides carried on with the meeting until newly acquired Rockets point guard Chris Paul stormed into the suite and took over the presentation, multiple sources said. Iguodala, Rosenthal and Cline-Thomas were stunned.
Paul, who had been a Rocket for just four days, raved about the closeness of the team and the transparency within the organization for about 20 minutes. He revealed that the franchise’s openness was something he has never experienced in the NBA. Iguodala was captivated.
The Rockets didn’t have cap space, so all that was available was their midlevel exception. They offered him a four-year deal worth $32 million. But Morey, a mastermind at maneuvering through the cap, began jotting down — right there on the conference table — lucrative sign-and-trade scenarios like a mad scientist, sources said. It was understood that this would be the lone route at persuading Iguodala to join the team.
The meeting lasted almost two hours and was termed as “the best recruiting presentation of all time,” according to a source within Iguodala’s camp.
Afterward, sources said Iguodala canceled all subsequent meetings with the Sixers, LA Clippers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz, and began investigating sign-and-trade possibilities.
The Rockets left without a commitment, but there was strong sentiment that he was Houston-bound.
Iguodala, despite being pleasantly surprised by the Rockets’ pitch, wound up signing a three-year deal worth $48 million to return to the Warriors later that day. He gave the Warriors one final chance at upping their offer, which started at three-years worth $36 million, as included in the Chris Haynes article.
Iguodala has served as an integral part of the Warriors’ championship core, winning Finals MVP in 2015 and serving as the team’s first player off the bench during this past season’s Finals. He averaged 7.6 points and four rebounds while playing stellar defense with the club this past season.
