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The Houston Rockets opened the first day of free agency with a significant splash. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, free-agent forward Christian Wood has agreed to a three-year $41 million contract to join the Rockets. Wood is coming to Houston after a one year stint with the Detroit Pistons.
After bouncing back-and-front between the NBA and the G-League, Wood appeared in a career-high 62 games for the Pistons last season, averaging 13.1 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. In his final game of the 2019-20 season, Wood scored a career-high 32 points (77.8 FG%, 75.0 3PT%) and pulled down seven rebounds in a 124-106 loss to the 76ers in March.
Deal expected to be completed with a sign-and-trade via Detroit, per source. https://t.co/TALHbm9OlP
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 21, 2020
The Rockets are adding a 6-foot-10 forward who is the prototypical big man for today’s NBA. As a versatile scorer, Wood is a lob threat who can create his own shot off the dribble. On the defensive end, Wood has shown some promise to develop into a reliable rim protector, but he could still use some improvements on defense.
The 25-year-old California native went undrafted during the 2015 NBA Draft and played with the Rockets’ Summer League team that same year. After he was released, Wood has spent time playing for the 76ers, Hornets, Bucks, and Pelicans before joining the Pistons in July of 2019.