When the Rockets made the move to trade Jordan Hill for Derek Fisher and a first round pick, the Rockets' intentions seemed fairly clear—Fisher could fill in as a backup point guard until Kyle Lowry returned and then could be bought out of his contract, with the Rockets gaining a first round pick in the process.
Now, almost three days after the news of the deal came down, Derek Fisher has yet to report to the Rockets. Neither Fisher nor the Rockets have commented on his status.
Read on for an update after the jump!
According to Fran Blinebury of NBA.com, the Rockets had planned on buying out Fisher's contract:
Rockets will buy out Derek Fisher, declare the future is in front of them.
— Fran Blinebury (@franblinebury) March 16, 2012
After the Spurs won the bidding for point guard Patty Mills, the Rockets have a bigger need for a backup point guard. Courtney Fortson was signed on a 10-day contract yesterday afternoon, but lacks NBA game experience.
Additionally, the Rockets likely expected Fisher to be willing to forgo his $3.4 million player option for next year in exchange for the opportunity to play with a contender, something he appears reluctant to do. If Fisher is intent on keeping his salary for 2012-13, would it make holding on to him a more viable option?
Adrian Wojnarowski certainly thinks so:
With Houston missing on Patty Mills, league execs wonder whether Derek Fisher will get buyout. Rockets need point guard with Kyle Lowry out.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) March 17, 2012
After already granting Fisher a 24 hour extension to report to the team, the Rockets are expecting Fisher to report by 3 PM ET if no buyout is reached. If he does not, he will face the prospect of docked pay. It'll certainly be an interesting story to watch.
UPDATE:
Derek Fisher and the Rockets reach a buyout agreement, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Jonathan Feigen reported the terms:
Rockets' buyout of Fisher paid him for rest of this season, but he opted out of all $3.4 million next yr, person with knowledge of deal said
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) March 19, 2012
With that deal, Rockets got a first-round pick basically for Jordan Hill's remaining 20 games under contract.
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) March 19, 2012