Austin Rivers will be backing up Chris Paul again.
He won’t be making “my dad is the team president” money anymore, but the Rockets are bringing him back on a one-plus-one veteran minimum contract ($2.2 million salary next season) keep key parts of their bench together, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Free agent guard Austin Rivers has agreed to a two-year deal to return to the Houston Rockets, league source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2019
Rivers deal includes a player option on the second year, source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2019
Rivers join Danuel House and Gerald Green as key Rockets bench players returning next season. Rivers fit well in Houston, signing there mid-season after starting the season with the Wizards.
While Rivers became a whipping boy with the Clippers, he has evolved into a respectable backup guard. He average 8.1 points and 2.2 assists per game last season, his three-point shooting fell off (and needs to be something that bounces back up to the 37 percent range this season), but he’s a good floor general who can defend a little.
Which is why he reportedly had offers much higher than the league minimum, but he wanted to return to a team where he felt he fit.
Austin Rivers had offers in $5.7M midlevel range but took the vet minimum from Rockets. “Now that the league is wide open, I just saw an opportunity. You can’t really put a price on happiness. The goal was to come back to Houston all along. I think we have the team to beat.”
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) July 1, 2019
CP3 started to show his age last season, and if that trend continues the Rockets may need to ask even more of Rivers.