After a summer of back-and-forth that intensified in the past few weeks after he signed an offer sheet with Brooklyn that the Rockets matched, Houston will outright released Donatas Motiejunas, the team announced Thursday. From the team press release:
Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that after extensive discussions with Donatas Motiejunas, his representatives, and the NBA league office, the Rockets will renounce Motiejunas and he will become an unrestricted free agent.
“Donatas was a true professional throughout his four seasons with the Rockets,” said Morey. “We wish Donatas the best moving forward and want to thank him for his contributions both on the court and in the community.”
This is a sign that whatever the Rockets found in their latest physical with him, it hit them hard. They could have simply failed him at the physical, and he would have been a restricted free agent again, giving Houston some leverage. Instead, they let him go.
He can now sign with any team except Brooklyn (he cannot sign with them for one year after signing the offer sheet with them before).
Seems Motiejunas gambled and lost when he held out for more money, after the Rockets initially didn't include the incentives the Nets had upon matching the offer sheet (since they didn't have to). I guess it might've still gone down this way once it came time to the physical, but either way, sounds like it'll be tough for him to get a deal that good after this. A shame, as he seems to have talent and potential, but those back problems sound serious.
