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According to Jonathan Feigen via the Houston Chronicle, the Rockets have wasted no time in bringing Nene back into the fold on a four-year deal.
Rockets reach an agreement with Nene on a four year, $15 million contract, source said.
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) July 1, 2017
Nene joined the Rockets last year on a one-year contract worth $2.9 million and was one of the best bargains in the league last season, averaging 10 points a game in coming off the bench as Clint Capela’s backup.
Nene turns 35 in September, and this four-year deal will likely ensure that he finishes his career as a Rocket. This is a slight raise for Nene from last year’s salary, but also something that will not break the bank.
According to Zach Lowe, Houston has used the non-bird rights salary on Nene, meaning that the mid-level and bi-annual exceptions are still available for Houston to use in signing free agents.
Looks the non-Bird number, meaning Rockets would have both the mid-level and biannual exceptions left. Also, it's 11:20 LOL https://t.co/IuS2INvzPm
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) July 1, 2017
The Rockets have started free agency by working on their in-house free agent. This now brings the total of guaranteed contracts for next season up to eight: Nene, Paul, Harden, Ariza, Anderson, Capela, Gordon and Onuaku. They still have several spots left to fill, and Houston has now locked up its in-house guys. Now it is time for the Rockets to explore from outside of the friendly confines and bring in fresh meat.
Update - 10:20 AM, July 1: Bobby Marks of ESPN is reporting that Nene’s deal can only be worth 3 years, $10.9 million due to the Over 38 rule in the CBA. This disallows a team to offer a player a contract beyond a player’s 38th birthday. A four-year deal would breach that rule, while a three-year deal keeps Nene in Houston until he is 37.
The structure of the Nene contract with Houston is three-years, $10.9m. Houston is not permitted to give Nene a... https://t.co/SCXwvFW9UK
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) July 1, 2017
Update - 12:00 PM, July 1: Marc Spears of ESPN is reporting that Nene is unhappy with the length of his Rockets contract after the fourth year was cut from Nene’s contract. Nene remains a free agent.
Free agent Nene is very disappointed about his $4 million drop in expected contract & is "back at square one in free agency," a source said. https://t.co/FiVWzbl6Ou
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpearsESPN) July 1, 2017
Update - 3:15 PM, July 2: Nene has agreed to a 3-year, $11 million deal with the Rockets, according to Woj.
Nene agrees to a 3-year, $11M deal, per source. https://t.co/ulqGFLMGsP
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 2, 2017
After the NBA made Nene go through a few hoops, he finally has his roots down in Houston, where he belongs. He will be a key member of the team’s second unit next season and we are extremely excited to have him back for the next three seasons!