Sources: Josh Smith agrees to deal with Rockets

By Adrian Wojnarowski

Yahoo Sports
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Josh Smith has agreed to sign a deal with the Houston Rockets, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

Josh Smith is hoping to jump-start his career with the Rockets. (USATODAY)

The Detroit Pistons on Monday released Smith with two years and $26 million left on his contract, unable to find a trade partner and unwilling to move forward with him on the roster.
Smith will sign a one-year deal with the Rockets for the biannual exception of $2 million after he clears waivers at 5 p.m. ET on Wednesday. His agents, Brian Dyke and Wallace Prather, informed the Rockets of the decision on Wednesday afternoon, sources said.

The Rockets believe Smith can step into the starting power forward spot.

The Rockets are in trade discussions that could be complete late Wednesday on a deal to free a roster spot to sign Smith, league sources said. For the Rockets, the addition of Smith closes a several-year pursuit of the talented but enigmatic power forward and moves him onto a frontline with his childhood friend, center Dwight Howard. The Rockets had a history with Smith, including a free-agent pursuit in 2013 that factored significantly into Smith’s choice of Houston over the Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Clippers, Miami Heat and Memphis Grizzlies.

After the Pistons made the stunning move of releasing Smith on Monday, Houston aggressively pursued Smith with a message of restoring his market value and eroded credibility as a force in the NBA. The Rockets sold Smith on coach Kevin McHale’s system and a roster of teammates who believe they need Smith’s talents to chase a Western Conference championship. Houston wants to get Smith back to his strengths of shot-blocking and rebounding on defense, and attacking the basket on offense.

Houston tried to sign Smith as a free agent in summer 2013 and worked on several sign-and-trade proposals with the Atlanta Hawks, but were unable to acquire him. Smith signed a four-year, $56 million deal with Detroit in 2013, which immediately went sideways, based in part on the untenable and mismatched frontline of forward Greg Monroe and center Andre Drummond.

Smith, drafted by Atlanta with the 17th overall pick in the 2004 NBA draft, has averaged 15.4 points and 7.8 rebounds per game in his 11 seasons in the league.

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As much as we're glad Josh Smith is not a Celtic, it should encourage us to know that someone of his talent level was available as a #17 draft pick. We may have five first round picks next year. Could be interesting come 2045.

Worcester, come 2045, I'll be happy if I have the energy to open my eyes in the morning.

Sam

Sam, we'll both probably be looking at Green from the underside of the grass roots by then. Did you know some people are getting buried in coffins emblazoned with logos of their favorite sports teams?

Here's one for Red Sox fans: http://www.memorials.com/Caskets/Boston-Red-Sox-Casket.php

Nothing available for Celtics fans yet.

W,

First of all, season's greetings to you and the boys/men. All the best for a great 2015.

My coffin's going to be stuffed with things that are really meaningful to me. My baseball glove and, of course, a ball, and why not a bat? My entire collection of 167 Frank Sinatra vinyl albums. My punctured Sam Jones basketball. Ashes of various pets. Mementos of Paris, San Francisco and Boston. My clarinet. All of my Celtics and Red Sox scorebooks throughout the years, and a lot of other baseball and basketball memorabilia, including a copy of a letter from Ty Cobb to my all-time Red Sox idol and now my personal friend, Bobby Doerr.

When my wife protested that there would be no room for me, to say nothing of the hernias the pallbearers would get, I suggested that she just buy a dumpster. We're now debating what size dumpster she'll need.

Sam

Sam, Home Depot offers these enormous green trash bags from Waste Management. Just fill it up on the front yard and Waste management comes and hauls it away. That way one can be buried alongside Jimmy Hoffa.