Houston Rockets: 2016 Offseason Grades

Nabbing Nene

With Dwight Howard and Terrence Jones gone — and Donatas Motiejunas still unsigned — the Rockets needed to a bit of frontcourt depth.

I’m not sure “veteran leader” is the right word to describe Nene, given the attitude he’s been prone to play with and the way that he never managed to put all his talent together, but even if he doesn’t serve as a mentor for the blossoming Capela, he’ll still be useful from a depth perspective.

On a one-year, $2.9 million deal, the Rockets also got great value on this signing. Nene is nowhere near what he once was now that he’s 33, but he still averaged a modest 9.2 points and 4.5 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per game for the Washington Wizards last year.

Like Anderson and Gordon, Nene’s ability to stay on the court is a legitimate concern. He’s battled injuries for the better part of his career and dating back to the 2011-12 season, he’s missed 43, 21, 29, 15 and 25 games, respectively.

However, the Rockets didn’t bring him in to do the heavy lifting in the frontcourt. Anything he contributes off the bench will be a bonus for a team relying on young bigs and for such a low price, it’s a borderline steal — even if no one should be expecting anything special from his defense or locker room leadership.

Grade: B

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