2017 NBA free agency grades: Houston Rockets add Troy Williams

According to reports, the Houston Rockets have agreed to a three-year, partially guaranteed deal with swingman Troy Williams.

Even as free agency is slowing down, the Houston Rockets keep making moves to add to their busy offseason.

Per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Rockets and second-year forward Troy Williams have agreed to a three-year, partially guaranteed deal. As Wojnarowski notes, the first year in Williams’ deal is fully guaranteed and trigger dates are included in both the second and third years as well, should it come to that.

After going undrafted in the 2016 NBA Draft, Williams registered multiple stops throughout his first year on the professional level, starting with the Memphis Grizzlies.

In 24 appearances for the Grizzlies, which included 13 starts, Williams averaged 5.3 points per game on 41.5 percent shooting from the field and 24.4 percent shooting from three. However, Williams’ stay with the Grizzlies came to an abrupt end at the end of January as he was waived in a corresponding roster move that saw the team bring in point guard Toney Douglas.

Following his release from the Grizzlies, Williams exclusively logged minutes with the then-Iowa Energy, the team’s G-League affiliate.

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After spending time with the Energy for a little over a month in the middle of the season, Williams signed a 10-day contract with the Rockets in mid-March of this year.

From there, Williams split time with the team’s affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, and then with the Rockets after signing a contract with the team to finish out the season.

The news of Williams’ deal comes directly after his strong showing in this year’s Summer League, where he averaged 22 points per game on 45.3 percent shooting from the field and 33.3 percent shooting from deep in five games.

After making waves with the acquisition of Chris Paul before the start of free agency, the Rockets have spent much of their time fortifying their wing position over the month of July.

That started with swingman P.J. Tucker, who the Rockets agreed to a four-year, $32 million deal with. It has since been bolstered with the reported addition of Luc Mbah a Moute, which was agreed upon earlier in the week.

With those two players as well as Trevor Ariza in the fold, minutes will likely be hard to come by for the 22-year-old Williams on the NBA level. Given that Williams already has some familiarity playing for the Vipers, refining his skills at the G-League level could be the best route for the Indiana product to improve for next season, rather than languishing on the bench with the Rockets.

Of course, this is speaking on how the Rockets are currently constructed and not taking into account the whole Carmelo Anthony angle, who the Rockets have been incessantly linked to in trade rumors for weeks.

All in all, it’s a solid signing on the Rockets’ part as they continue to mine for talent to add to their roster.

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

While Williams has shown flashes on the NBA level, it’s still very much a long game with him and the Rockets have the resources to provide him the development he needs to grow further as a player.

Grade: C+

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