Houston Rockets Roster and Trade News 2015: Terrence Jones and Team Fail to Agree to a Contract Extension
The Houston Rockets see a rough start to their season, dropping their first two games so far against the Denver Nuggets and the defending champs Golden State Warriors. And if that's not enough bad news for fans, then here's another one — reports say that Terrence Jones and the team could not agree to an early contract extension, which means that the power forward will be a restricted free agent.
With this development, it means that Jones can take the opportunity to take a look at offer sheets from other teams by next summer. Selected 18th in the 2012 NBA Draft by Houston, Jones immediately became a vital part of the team's rotation.
The former Kentucky Wildcat is a strong presence inside, both offensively and defensively. His career high was a 36-point effort (11 rebounds) last year against the Milwaukee Bucks. He also became an important contributor during Houston's run to the Western Conference Finals.
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The only dent in his basketball resume are his injuries, several of them actually. Last season alone, he missed 49 games because of a slew of injuries, allowing some talk that the Rockets may not be keen on giving him a contract extension, and it seems to be what's exactly happening right now.
Last year, he and Lithuanian big man Donatas Motiejunas shared time in the power forward position, complementing Dwight Howard in the center. But because Motiejunas was also out for a long time due to back injury, Jones had the most of the opportunities in court. And just like him, Motiejunas also was supposed to be signing an extension, but the Rockets didn't offer one.
Without Jones and Motiejunas in the frontline, it looks like Houston will have a big problem in the future, considering that both players offer not just defensive presence but also significant offensive contributions. Should they find someone else in free agency, then they will have to go for someone who can also score the basketball.
