The Houston Rockets are rounding out their bench following a major acquisition of Chris Paul. They have agreed to a deal with free agent forward Nene, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
Rockets reach an agreement with Nene on a four year, $15 million contract, source said.
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) July 1, 2017
ESPN’s Bobby Marks reports the deal is actually a three-year agreement worth $10.9 million:
The structure of the Nene contract with Houston is three-years, $10.9m. Houston is not permitted to give Nene a four-year contract because of the Over 38 rule. The fourth season would have extended past his 38th birthday.
(UPDATE 7/2)
After some complications with his initial agreement, the Rockets found a way to bring the Brazilian big man back after all but on a smaller deal. He’s joining Houston on a three-year, $11 million contract, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Nene agrees to a 3-year, $11M deal, per source. https://t.co/ulqGFLMGsP
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 2, 2017
Nene came off a career-year with Houston, a necessity in the team’s plans moving forward as they aim for contention. He’s going to be super important to the pick and roll with either Chris Paul or James Harden when he’s in to replace or play alongside Clint Capela. His rebounding and tough interior play will pay dividends for Houston’s interior defense.
“They brought a young Nene back,” he said in May. “When you’re happy, when you feel good, when you feel engaged and trust the people you work with, of course you want to be back.
He provides depth in the frontcourt for Houston, playing behind and mentoring budding center Clint Capela. The reserve big man held per-game averages of 9.1 points, 4.2 rebounds in 17.9 minutes.
