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The Rockets landed one of the most intriguing free agents on Friday night, agreeing to a three-year, $ 41 million contract with Pistons forward Christian Wood. The 25-year-old became a late success story last season in Detroit and became particularly strong in what ended up being the final stretch of the season, entering the starting lineup in February and turning his impressive production around. per minute in positive results. . He joins a Houston organization in the midst of a potential transition. Note the case.
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Category B
Anytime you pay a bounty for a player with a relatively small production sample, there’s a built-in risk, and Wood is now joining his sixth NBA team in five seasons, having spent a lot of time in the G League. Gross production last year (22 points, 10 rebounds and 1.5 blocks by 36 to go with 56/38/74 percent split runs) certainly justifies this type of investment. He has made tangible progress over the past two years, and his ability to score effectively inside and out is remarkable. Wood is also integrating well with Houston, who you think could play him at center assuming the team intend to play small again. Then again, Wood has never started more than 12 games in a season and has yet to prove himself as a contributor to a winning organization. That’s a pretty dime in a market where Montrezl Harrell and Derrick Jones both graduated intermediate. But Houston needs a lot of effort to get started, and Wood is poised to become a starter spacing out and blocking shots if he stays the course in his development. His body type wouldn’t have played out in the past eras of the NBA, but it’s now, and it’s the Rockets.
Keep in mind that this deal came as part of a signing and trade with Detroit for Trevor Ariza, and takes Houston in the luxury tax (for now). Ariza was acquired earlier in a trade for Robert Covington who also scored Houston two first-round picks. It’s a decent run of all-around trades that will help the Rockets replenish their long-term pool of draft picks, and while Wood isn’t as tested as either of those players, some of the price baked here takes into account its age and probability. to his advantage in his first full-time starting role. Houston needed help from the start and will now complete his list mainly with minimum bids. No matter what the list looks like in a week’s time, Wood is a solid upside bet for the future, and in a vacuum the price is far from grueling. And this is a major victory for the player, who seems to have found its first longtime home in the NBA.
More free agency notes:
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