Report: Houston Rockets Sign UNLV’s Christian Wood
As we meander our way through to the free agency off season and the draft has come to a close, this is where the Houston Rockets shine the most.
In my opinion, it honestly is a true test of wit to see if general managers are capable of leading the search to find diamonds in the rough.
You know what I’m talking about!
I’m talking about undrafted free agents.
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It’s a gold mine of talent — but obviously, they weren’t picked for a reason so it’s up to teams to accept their shortcomings and try to see if any of these players would be a missing piece to vast puzzle of ensure a team in successful in what it does.
And you know what?
The Rockets have found their guy, at least for right now:
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, the Rockets have signed UNLV forward Christian Wood to a free agent deal:
Sources: UNLV forward Christian Wood – one of the highest-rated talents to go unselected – has agreed to a free agent deal with Houston.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 26, 2015
As Woj mentioned, the 6’11” Wood was one of the best talents that went undrafted this year as he was expected to be taken in the first round.
However, his pre-draft work was less than desired which caused his stock to plummet faster than a falling rock.
Here’s what Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress had to say about Wood in his scouting report:
"Standing 6-11, with a 7-3 wingspan, Wood has excellent size and length for a NBA power forward. His frame is somewhat on the frail side at the moment, particularly in the lower body, but will certainly continue to fill out as he matures physically, with the help of an NBA weight room. Athletically, Wood is impressive, as he’s extremely fluid and agile for a player his size, running the floor very well when motivated, with long strides and the ability to get off the ground quickly and effortlessly."
He also said that versatile offensively, is good a running the floor and is a great cutter in pick-and-roll situations which is part of the Rockets bread-and-butter.
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As far as defensively, he said that he’s still quite raw and tends to bite fakes by quicker players, frustrating him to a point to where he just stands there hunched over, frustrated and doesn’t recover.
He is also quite lanky for a player of his size and in order to bang with the other big men of the NBA, he must utilize the vast array of the NBA’s resources — like a weight room — to bulk up and be competitive.
It remains to be seen if this guy makes the roster but with him being so raw I do see a spot for him with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers at best if he looks good this summer and in training camp.
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That way he gets the time he needs to develop and live up to his potential.
It honestly is up to Wood so we’ll have to see.
Wood, 19, averaged 15.5 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 2.6 BPG in 32.7 minutes per game of action in 2014-15 for the Runnin’ Rebels. He shot 49.7 percent from the field, 28.4 percent from three and 73.6 percent at the charity stripe. He also led the Mountain West Conference in total defensive rebounds with 235 on the season.
Go Rockets!