Tag: Bruno Caboclo

Shams: Boston Celtics sign ex-Rockets big man Bruno Caboclo to camp deal

The former Houston center will compete for a roster spot with Boston.

The Boston Celtics appear to be setting up quite the competition in training camp to fill the role of the team’s third center for the 2022-23 season, with Boston’s big man depth a minor if lingering issue. The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports that the Celtics are signing former Houston Rockets big Bruno Caboclo to a camp deal to compete for a roster spot.

Caboclo — not to be confused with fellow Houston (and Boston) center alum Bruno Fernando — played for the Rockets in their 2021-22 campaign, putting up 2.8 points and 2.3 rebounds per game in a mere 6 minutes of floor time.

Presumably, the Celtics would be looking to fill a bigger role more akin to what the former 20th pick of the 2014 NBA draft played for the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2018-19 season that saw him log 8.3 points, 4.6 boards, 1.5 assists, and a block per game over 23.5 minutes a contest.

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Rockets waiving Bruno Caboclo to clear roster spot for Harden trade

Houston is taking in Victor Oladipo, Dante Exum, and Rodions Kurucs while only sending out James Harden. Thus, a roster spot needs to open.

As part of the blockbuster trade sending James Harden to Brooklyn, the Houston Rockets are taking in Victor Oladipo from Indiana, Dante Exum from Cleveland, and Rodions Kurucs from the Nets.

In terms of roster spots, that amounts to three players coming in and only one going out, which would put the Rockets over the NBA’s limit. Thus, someone else would have to go for the trade to be legal, and it appears that someone will be 25-year-old big man Bruno Caboclo.

Per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, the Rockets will waive Caboclo on Thursday before finalizing the trade.

Caboclo, who re-signed with Houston in the offseason, had only played in mop-up duty since the return of veteran center DeMarcus Cousins from quarantine. Between Cousins, starter Christian Wood, and smaller lineups featuring either Jae’Sean Tate or PJ Tucker in the middle, there didn’t seem to be a path for Caboclo to crack Stephen Silas’ rotation. At 6-foot-9 and nearly 230 pounds, Kurucs might also fit into that equation.

In six appearances this season, Caboclo averaged 2.8 points (47.1% FG) and 2.3 rebounds in 6.0 minutes. His minimum salary would not have been fully guaranteed until February 27, so Caboclo’s release also helps the Rockets stay beneath the hard salary cap and luxury-tax thresholds.

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Here is the projected rotation for the Rockets after trading James Harden

The Houston Rockets traded away 2018 NBA MVP James Harden in a blockbuster deal. But what will the new version of this team look like?

The Houston Rockets traded away 2018 NBA MVP James Harden in a blockbuster deal. But what will the new version of this team look like?

Under first-year head coach Stephen Silas, Houston will run their offense through John Wall and Christian Wood. They will also incorporate two-time NBA All-Star Victor Oladipo, who was acquired from the Indiana Pacers in the deal as well.

Overall, this move was more focused on the future than the present, as the Rockets landed a total of four unprotected first-rounders and four unprotected pick swaps.

There were also immediate financial implications considering, as noted by our own Yossi Gozlan, Houston went from $5.2 million over the luxury tax to $3.7 million under the tax. Houston can also generate a traded player exception worth $10.7 million if they want to continue tweaking this roster, per Gozlan.

Below, however, as what the rotation looks like for the Rockets after trading away their longtime superstar:

Here is the projected rotation for the Rockets after trading James Harden

The Houston Rockets traded away 2018 NBA MVP James Harden in a blockbuster deal. But what will the new version of this team look like?

The Houston Rockets traded away 2018 NBA MVP James Harden in a blockbuster deal. But what will the new version of this team look like?

Under first-year head coach Stephen Silas, Houston will run their offense through John Wall and Christian Wood. They will also incorporate two-time NBA All-Star Victor Oladipo, who was acquired from the Indiana Pacers in the deal as well.

Overall, this move was more focused on the future than the present, as the Rockets landed a total of four unprotected first-rounders and four unprotected pick swaps.

There were also immediate financial implications considering, as noted by our own Yossi Gozlan, Houston went from $5.2 million over the luxury tax to $3.7 million under the tax. Houston can also generate a traded player exception worth $10.7 million if they want to continue tweaking this roster, per Gozlan.

Below, however, as what the rotation looks like for the Rockets after trading away their longtime superstar:

Rockets reaction: Postgame quotes, analysis of big win in Chicago

Eric Gordon, John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Bruno Caboclo, and Stephen Silas were among the standouts from a successful preseason opener.

Eric Gordon led a balanced effort with 16 points (70% FG) in 20 minutes as the Rockets crushed the host Chicago Bulls in Friday’s preseason opener, 125-104 (box score). Houston was an astounding +33 in just 20 minutes played by the veteran shooting guard.

The Rockets were without three presumed starters in James Harden, PJ Tucker, and Christian Wood, but it didn’t seem to matter against a clearly overmatched Bulls squad at United Center.

Former All-Stars John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins each made healthy returns after missing the entire 2019-20 NBA season due to injury. Wall had 13 points (60.0% FG), nine assists, five rebounds, and two steals in his Houston debut, and the Rockets were +27 in 19 minutes played by the 6-foot-4 guard. Meanwhile, Cousins scored 14 points (71.4% FG) and made three 3-pointers in 15 minutes as the team’s starting center, and he also had five rebounds and two blocked shots.

See below for a compilation of game analysis, videos, and postgame quotes in several prominent areas from Friday’s matchup.

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Contract tidbits for Sterling Brown, Jae’Sean Tate, and Bruno Caboclo

Brown has a straight-forward minimum contract with the Rockets, while the terms for Tate and Caboclo are a bit more complex.

Courtesy of NBA salary cap experts Bobby Marks (ESPN) and Keith Smith (Yahoo Sports), we now have new details regarding three recent contracts given out by the Houston Rockets in the 2020 offseason.

Per Smith, the contract to guard Sterling Brown — formerly of the Milwaukee Bucks — is very straight-forward. It’s for one season at the minimum salary, and it is already fully guaranteed.

The new contracts for Jae’Sean Tate and Bruno Caboclo, however, are a bit more complicated. Per Marks, both Tate and Caboclo only have $50,000 guaranteed, which gives the team flexibility if they decide to go in a different direction with one of those roster spots at a later date.

Caboclo’s deal becomes fully guaranteed if he is not waived by the first game of the NBA’s 2020-21 regular season (Dec. 22), while Tate’s contract guarantee will increase to $500,000 at that time.

Caboclo’s contract is for two seasons in total, while Tate’s deal is for three. However, all of the future years are non-guaranteed. This gives the team a number of potential paths moving forward, depending on the level of play shown by both players and also the state of the overall roster.

Led by new GM Rafael Stone, Houston used a portion of its mid-level exception (MLE) to give Tate the three-year deal, which is not allowed under minimum exception contracts. There are several reasons for this.

One potential reason is that Tate’s first-year salary is $1,445,697 — typically the minimum for a player with one year of NBA experience — instead of the standard NBA rookie minimum of $898,310. In other words, it’s a higher salary for the rising 25-year-old prospect.

However, another plausible reason is that the three-year deal makes it harder for other NBA teams to claim Tate on waivers, should the Rockets decide they need his roster spot to acquire someone else.

“By giving Tate three years, it makes him ineligible to be claimed by a team using the minimum exception if Houston waives him,” Smith writes. “By giving Tate just $50,000 guaranteed, it makes him eligible for a two-way [contract] with Houston, if he is waived.”

With Houston subject to a hard salary cap after the sign-and-trade acquisition of Christian Wood, the Rockets are already close to their maximum team payroll. However, should a player they like (Glenn Robinson III?) come available at a later time, the unique terms in Tate and Caboclo’s deals could give the team additional roster flexibility.

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Rockets announce signings of big man Bruno Caboclo, three others

In Thursday’s release, Houston also confirmed its contracts with Jae’Sean Tate, Sterling Brown, and a two-way deal with rookie Mason Jones.

A day after Bruno Caboclo said he had a contract offer from the Houston Rockets, the 25-year-old big man has officially signed it.

“Caboclo (6-9, 218) was originally acquired via trade from Memphis on Feb. 6, 2020 and appeared in eight games for the Rockets over the remainder of the season,” the team said in its announcement. “The Brazilian native was the 20th overall pick by Toronto in the 2014 NBA Draft and has appeared in 99 career games. In 2018-19, Caboclo averaged career-highs of 8.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists for the Grizzlies.”

Financial terms weren’t disclosed by the team, but Caboclo said Wednesday that the contract was for two years at the NBA’s minimum salary, with the second (for the 2021-22 season) as a team option.

Caboclo, who is 6-foot-9 with a 7-foot-7 wingspan, played only sparingly after being acquired by Houston at the February trade deadline. The athletic big man was also limited by a knee injury upon his arrival.

However, the Rockets did express optimism about his long-term future, and Caboclo could have a better opportunity to make an impact by being with the team at the outset of training camp. Caboclo should slot into the 2020-21 depth chart as a backup option in the frontcourt behind veterans such as Christian Wood, P.J. Tucker, and DeMarcus Cousins.

Caboclo shot 36.9% on 3-pointers in the 2018-19 season, and that form could make him useful as a “stretch big” in the five-out offense desired by new Houston coach Stephen Silas.

In addition to the signing of Caboclo, the Rockets also formalized their recent contract agreements with guard Sterling Brown, forward Jae’Sean Tate, and rookie guard Mason Jones (on a two-way deal).

As of midday Thursday, Cousins was the only remaining acquisition whose free agency agreement with the Rockets had yet to be made official. With training camp for the 2020-21 season set to begin next Tuesday, Dec. 1, all agreements should be finalized in relatively short order.

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Bruno Caboclo has contract offer from Rockets, plans to sign it soon

The 25-year-old big man says the contract offer is for two years at the NBA’s minimum salary, with the second season a team option.

The Houston Rockets have offered a two-year contract at the NBA’s minimum salary to 25-year-old big man Bruno Caboclo, and he plans to sign it in short order, he told Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston.

The second year of the offer is a team option. With the Rockets subject to a hard salary cap after the sign-and-trade acquisition of Christian Wood, the minimum bid is the best they can reasonably do.

“It means that they trust me, and I feel good about it,” Caboclo said of the team’s offer. “Since I got here, I’ve felt at home. Everybody treats me well. They always push me. We work hard every day, and I like that.”

Caboclo, who is 6-foot-9 with a 7-foot-7 wingspan, played only sparingly after being acquired by Houston at the February trade deadline. The athletic big man was also limited by a knee injury upon his arrival.

However, the Rockets did express optimism about Caboclo’s long-term future, and he could have a better opportunity to make an impact if he’s with the team from the outset of training camp. Assuming he is re-signed, Caboclo could be a viable backup option at power forward and center behind veterans such as Wood, P.J. Tucker, and DeMarcus Cousins.

Caboclo said the first year of his new contract would be guaranteed after Tuesday, Dec. 1, which is the opening day of training camp for the 2020-21 season. “I didn’t sign the papers yet, but hopefully soon,” he said.

After being selected No. 20 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft, Caboclo finally got his first extended opportunity in 34 games with Memphis late in the 2018-19 season. In that stretch, Caboclo averaged 8.3 points and 4.6 rebounds in 23.5 minutes per game, and he shot 36.9% on 3-pointers.

Once the Rockets re-sign Caboclo, which seems imminent, that’s the form they hope he recaptures for the upcoming 2020-21 season.

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Report: Rockets would like to retain big man Bruno Caboclo

“The Athletic understands that the organization is invested in him and would like to have him going forward,” Kelly Iko writes.

The Houston Rockets hope to retain 25-year-old big man Bruno Caboclo, according to a new report from Kelly Iko of The Athletic.

“The Athletic understands that the organization is invested in him and would like to have him going forward,” Iko writes.

With the Rockets subject to a hard salary cap after the sign-and-trade acquisition of Christian Wood, they are presumably unable to offer Caboclo more than the NBA’s minimum salary. Thus, it makes sense for Caboclo to take his time with free agency, in hopes of seeing if any larger offers materialize (or ones with an easier path to playing time) before settling for a minimum deal as an end-of-the-bench option in Houston.

Caboclo, who is 6-foot-9 with a 7-foot-7 wingspan, played only sparingly after being acquired by Houston at the February trade deadline. The athletic big man was also limited by a knee injury upon his arrival.

However, the Rockets did express optimism about Caboclo’s long-term future, and he could have a better opportunity to make an impact if he’s with the team from the outset of training camp. If re-signed, Caboclo could be a viable backup option at power forward and center behind veterans such as Wood, P.J. Tucker, and DeMarcus Cousins.

After being selected No. 20 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft, Caboclo finally got his first extended opportunity in 34 games with Memphis late in the 2018-19 season. In that stretch, Caboclo averaged 8.3 points and 4.6 rebounds in 23.5 minutes per game, and he shot 36.9% on 3-pointers.

Should the Rockets re-sign Caboclo, that’s the form they hope he recaptures for the upcoming 2020-21 season.

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Rockets reportedly tried to trade for Nerlens Noel at 2020 deadline

The deal didn’t get done, but with Noel set to become a free agent this offseason, Houston might again pursue the athletic big man.

According to Tim MacMahon of ESPN, the Houston Rockets didn’t want to completely commit to smaller lineups as part of their flurry of moves at this past season’s trade deadline in February 2020.

Rather, it happened in part because a planned deal for an established backup center didn’t work out following the blockbuster trade of center Clint Capela for versatile forward Robert Covington.

Per MacMahon, Houston’s target was Nerlens Noel of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Here’s how he described it on Zach Lowe’s podcast:

They obviously went all in on micro-ball, but they thought at the time that they could find a bargain big man. If Clint Capela was a full-service Marriott, they thought they could find a Courtyard by Marriott type of big man to at least be in the rotation. .

For example, they had discussions before the trade deadline and were optimistic and thought that they could get a deal done to bring in Nerlens Noel.

The Rockets did trade for Bruno Caboclo in the final hours before the deadline, in hopes that he could potentially fill a similar role. However, he struggled in limited opportunities with the Rockets.

As for Noel, the deal likely fell apart because the Thunder were much closer to contention than expected, and thus less likely to be a seller at the deadline. (Oklahoma City, of course, ended up pushing the Rockets to seven games in a tightly contested first-round playoff series.)

Now 26 years old, Noel averaged 7.4 points (68.4% FG), 4.9 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 18.5 minutes per game this season. Noel made the minimum salary and is set to become a free agent this offseason, so he very plausibly could again become a target by the Rockets — assuming they still want the option of larger lineups. As an athletic center, he could potentially provide both rim protection on defense and a lob threat on offense (like Capela did) as a pick-and-roll partner for James Harden.

Noel was the No. 6 overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft by Philadelphia. During his career, he’s played four seasons with the Sixers; one season in Dallas; and the last two in Oklahoma City, where he played alongside current Rockets star Russell Westbrook in the 2018-19 campaign.

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