The Houston Rockets agreed to a two-year deal with small forward James Ennis, addressing a need at a position where they desperately need help.
It has been a somewhat disappointing offseason for Houston Rockets fans who were hoping the team would make a big splash. There were many marquee free agents who hit the market this summer, but Houston lacked the financial flexibility to sign one outright, and could not tempt a team with enough assets to perform a sign-and-trade deal.
With the loss of Trevor Ariza to the Phoenix Suns, in addition to Luc Mbah a Moute choosing to return to the Los Angeles Clippers, the Rockets were left with a hole to fill at the small forward position. P.J. Tucker will likely have to slide to the small forward position and be the starter for the team this season.
The Rockets added reinforcements in the form of former second round pick out of Georgetown, James Ennis. Ennis spent his 2017-18 season with the Memphis Grizzlies before being traded to the Detroit Pistons in February in exchange for Brice Johnson and a 2022 second round draft pick.
Free agent James Ennis has agreed to a two-year deal with the Houston Rockets, league sources tell Yahoo. Deal includes player option in second season.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 11, 2018
The Rockets will be the fifth team Ennis has played for in his fifth season in the league, so it’s clear he has had difficulty carving out any sort of long-term role at any of the destinations he’s played in. Now he’ll have an opportunity to compete for playing time on a contending team that definitely has a need for Ennis’ position as well as his skill-set.
Last season, between his time with the Memphis Grizzlies and Detroit Pistons, Ennis averaged 7.1 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 72 appearances for the two teams. This was all on 47.4 percent shooting from the field, 33.3 percent from behind the 3-point line, and 83.6 percent on his free throw attempts. This was all while averaging 22.3 minutes per game between the two teams.
Ennis has clearly proven that he can be a solid NBA role player at the small forward position with his decent shooting numbers and ability to lock down on defense. This is likely where he’ll be asked to contribute the most by Mike D’Antoni as the Rockets look to fill the void left by the defensive prowess of both Ariza and Mbah a Moute.
When those two players decided to move on from playing for the Houston Rockets, fans might have thought that the team would go for a player like Carmelo Anthony to add to the team. Anthony would obviously add another talented scoring option to a roster that already has the league’s MVP and he would likely accept a lesser role in order to compete for a championship.
However, the Rockets decided to go with Ennis, who is still in the prime of his career at 28 years old and has proven himself as an NBA role player. At 6’7″, he can guard multiple positions and be tasked with guarding the best player on the opposing team when he comes off the bench.
Overall, this was not a flashy move by the Houston Rockets front office, but it definitely fulfills a need for the team. The deal does not put a burden on their salary situation, and Ennis could return next season with his player option that he will have next summer.
Next: 2018 NBA free agency tracker: Grades for every deal so far
Grade: B-