Another free agent has been taken off the board for the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday, with veteran wing Josh Okogie reportedly headed to a close Western Conference rival in the Houston Rockets.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Okogie has agreed to a one-year, $3.1 million contract with the Rockets after recently finalizing a buyout with the Charlotte Hornets which allowed him to enter free agency.
The Rockets have just added to an already elite defense
Okogie has built a reputation as one of the best wing defenders in the league, with his arrival in Houston coming after the franchise previously signed another noted defender in Dorian Finney-Smith to a four-year, $52.7 million contract way back at the start of free agency.
Add that duo to rising two-way star Amen Thompson and the Rockets have multiple defenders they can throw at the league’s elite guards and forwards, having already ranked fifth on that end of the floor last season.
The Warriors and Rockets have become close rivals over the past couple years, including this past season which culminated in a tight, defensive-minded first-round playoff series that Golden State won in seven games despite only once scoring 110 points.
Free agent forward Josh Okogie has agreed to a one-year, $3.1 million deal with the Houston Rockets, sources tell ESPN. Okogie enters his 8th NBA season and gives the Rockets another active wing defender who has averaged 6.3 points over 416 games. pic.twitter.com/RazV3afZq1
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News of Okogie’s buyout and emergence on the free agency market did pique the interest of some Warrior fans, with the franchise still needing to address their perimeter defense with uncertainty around the future of Gary Payton II.
While the beloved veteran remains an unrestricted free agent and a return to the franchise could be on the cards, Okogie might have been a worthy upgrade based on the contrasting defensive numbers of the two last season.
Okogie is also a former teammate of Golden State star Jimmy Butler, albeit for a brief but notable period. Okogie was a rookie with the Minnesota Timberwolves and hadn’t yet played an NBA game when Butler famously ripped into coaches, teammates and front office executives during a fiery practice at training camp in 2018, having requested a trade from the franchise just weeks earlier.
Butler and Okogie wound up playing a grand total of eight games together, before the All-Star forward was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers where he played out the rest of the season.
A reunion of sorts between Butler and Okogie is now no longer on the cards, with fans still awaiting the Warriors to make their first move as the wait continues over three weeks into free agency.
