Rockets change their mind, waive Pablo Prigioni, keep Tyler Ennis

After trading Michael Beasley for Tyler Ennis, there was some mild surprise in Rocketland this afternoon when it was reported the team released the Syracuse product in favor of undrafted Bobby Brown. It seemed like a weird decision.

Turns out, it was not the weirdest thing that would happen with the Rockets’ roster today.

The Vertical’s Shams Charania, who broke the “news” that Ennis was being waived, now reports the Rockets “changed course” and waived Rockets playoff legend, the second-oldest player in the NBA, Pablo Prigioni.

While the flip-flop is strange, this is probably the right decision. While Prigioni’s leadership and veteran wiles are valuable, the Rockets have more mature veterans in their locker room than at any point in the last few years with Nene, Ryan Anderson, Trevor Ariza, Corey Brewer and, depending on your belief in his maturity, James Harden.

Tyler Ennis was a first-round pick two years ago, was a favorite of Daryl Morey’s since his days at Syracuse, and will likely improve in his time with the Rockets, particularly under point guard soothsayer Mike D’Antoni. There’s nowhere for Pablo to go but down.

It is rather bittersweet, for despite ultimately reaching the best use of the team’s final roster spots — D’Antoni clearly loves Brown’s reckless offensive abandon and Kyle Wiltjer’s dead-eye shooting — Pablo is rightfully beloved. We’ll always have your torment of Chris Paul, Pablo. Always.