Donatas Motiejunas last played in an NBA game on April 13th, suiting up for the Rockets nearly eight months ago.
Since then, Motiejunas has experienced a long, conflict-filled restricted free agency period, a period that could be returning in the coming days if the Rockets ultimately choose to send him back.
Motiejunas and agent B.J. Armstrong have yet to find common ground on a new deal with the Rockets, despite having several months to do so. Brooklyn chose to sign Motiejunas to a four-year, $37 million offer sheet last week, an offer that was later matched by the Rockets.
All was going as expected, with Motiejunas now scheduled to have his mandatory physical on Monday to join the team. Motiejunas and B.J. Armstrong, for an unknown reason at the time, decided against showing up, causing league-wide confusion and questioning.
At last, details as to why Motiejunas decided not to show up to his physical are emerging. Following from Calvin Watkins of ESPN:
Restricted free agent Donatas Motiejunas won’t report to the Houston Rockets because of a difference of nearly $6 million from the offer sheet he signed with the Brooklyn Nets, sources told ESPN on Wednesday.
Last week, Motiejunas signed a four-year, $37 million offer sheet with the Nets. The Rockets on Monday opted to match that offer. However, based on the CBA, the Rockets only had to match the principle terms of the offer sheet, which came to $31 million.
The $6 million difference was to be paid to Motiejunas via incentive clauses if he played for the Nets.
What comes next for Donatas Motiejunas is unknown, as his fate largely rests in the hands of the Rockets. Houston has several options and different routes to take in this difficult situation.
To start, they can began negotiating a brand new contract with Motiejunas and his reps. Motiejunas seems committed to declining Houston’s current offer of $31 million across four years, making this option more likely to happen, of course.
They may also choose to hold tight until next year, holding Motiejunas’ rights and continuing the current season with little disruption.
B.J. Armstrong is open to receiving another offer sheet from a separate team, according to Watkins. That separate team cannot be the Nets — By league rules, they must wait one full year before signing Motiejunas.
Motiejunas, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of the Vertical, has no intentions of re-joining the Rockets at this time. It has been speculated that he is unhappy with the Rockets, a team that openly tried trading him this past February at the deadline.
Motiejunas enjoys the city of Houston and its fans, making this an even bigger difficult position to be in. He is edging to return to action, no matter the team, and hopes to ink a final contract with a team sooner rather than later.
Whether that team will be the Rockets is a question fans, teammates, executives, and Motiejunas himself wants answered.
