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2017 NBA free agency grades: Rockets agree to sign P.J. Tucker

By Eric Spyropoulos

TORONTO, ON - APRIL 24: P.J. Tucker
TORONTO, ON - APRIL 24: P.J. Tucker /
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dThe Houston Rockets added much needed depth with their signing of P.J. Tucker, a tough, physical defender. Let’s evaluate the signing for Houston.

After trading for Chris Paul, the Houston Rockets needed to rebuild their bench. After all, they traded several rotational players to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for the future Hall of Fame point guard.

After the trade, the Rockets were left paper-thin in the frontcourt, making the four-year, $32 million signing of P.J. Tucker (as reported by The Vertical‘s Shams Charania) even more valuable and important.

Tucker is a versatile and physical defender that is capable of guarding both guards and forwards. His ability to switch on to smaller guards or bigger forwards is extremely valuable, especially in the Western Conference.

Last season Tucker posted a defensive box plus-minus of 1.9 and a defensive real plus-minus of 1.78, good for 12th in the league among small forwards.

However, given his relatively limited shooting ability, Tucker is best suited to play more minutes at power forward in small lineups. He can guard most opposing power forwards and is capable of switching on to guards in the pick-and-roll.

Tucker is certainly limited offensively, as he primarily spots up in the corner for three-pointers. For his career, 72.3 percent of his three-point attempts have come from the corner. Last season, he hit 45.5 percent of such shots from beyond the arc.

Now playing alongside James Harden and Chris Paul, Tucker should benefit greatly on the offensive end by getting even more open looks from beyond the arc. Tucker’s shooting has improved in recent years, as he even shot 40 percent on three-pointers with the Toronto Raptors last season.

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    • At around $8 million per year, the Rockets got Tucker signed on a very reasonable contract. Although he is already 32, Tucker should be slated to play above the contract value for at least the first two years of the contract. In fact, the fourth year of the contract is supposedly partially non-guaranteed.

    After losing Patrick Beverley, the Rockets were in need of a tough, physical defender. Tucker has a similar attitude to the game as Beverley does, which will benefit the Rockets during tough stretches of the game and season.

    Now with Tucker, Houston can throw out good defensive lineups including Paul, Trevor Ariza, Tucker, and Clint Capela. Additionally, the Rockets also have the opportunity to bring back Nene, a big that can slot into such lineups.

    In the end, while many fans were surprised by the length of the contract, the yearly salary is certainly reasonable for a player of Tucker’s defensive abilities. He is a dynamic and versatile defender that can guard multiple positions — a crucial ability to have in today’s NBA.

    The Rockets needed to build their bench back up and add more defensive-minded players this summer. The signing of P.J. Tucker is the first step in doing so, as he brings versatile defense and capable three-point shooting to a Rockets team looking to cement its place in the upper-echelon of the Western Conference.

    Next: 2017 NBA free agency tracker - Grades for every deal so far

    Grade: A-

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