The Houston Rockets made a huge splash on Sunday night when they traded for former Denver Nuggets embattled point guard Ty Lawson. Lawson adds another very good player to a team that was already very good last season, having made it to the Western Conference Finals. The addition of Lawson coupled with the previous signing of Marcus Thornton would make it seem like a Jason Terry reunion is unlikely - but that may not be the case. Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports that the trade actually enhances the chances of Terry coming back to Houston.
It was reported earlier in the offseason that the Thornton signing didn't have an effect on whether the Rockets kept Terry, but the Lawson trade reportedly did and it was a positive effect. In the trade for Lawson the Rockets gave up Pablo Prigioni, who was the team's backup point guard last season and Nick Johnson who, although he didn't play much last year, is still a guard. With two guards having been shipped out and only one guard coming back, that leaves space for Terry to sign.
It was reported last week that Terry and the Rockets were close to a deal, but nothing has come of it yet as they focused their attention on acquiring Lawson. Terry was the Rockets' starting point guard at the end of last season when Patrick Beverley went down with a season-ending injury. It doesn't seem as though he will need to play point guard at all this year should he re-sign because they are getting Beverley back and now have Lawson.
Next season will be Terry's 17th in the NBA and could potentially be his last. Playing time might be tough to come by in the Rockets backcourt if Terry signs, as shooting guard is a loaded position with James Harden, Thornton and potentially Terry. Terry isn't the kind of player that is going to give you a ton of minutes anymore, but he is a tremendous leader with championship experience that can still knock down a good percentage of threes (39 percent last season.) You never know what could happen in any given season with injuries, so having quality depth is never a bad thing and the potential re-signing of Terry is a shrewd and solid move by the Rockets.
