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Rockets sign free agent Willie Cauley-Stein 

N.B. Lindberg
N.B. Lindberg

Space City Scoop

New York Knicks v Philadelphia 76ers / Mitchell Leff/GettyImages

The Houston Rockets have signed free agent Willie Cauley-Stein to a one-year contract, per The Athletic's Shams Charania. 

Cauley-Stein is expected to compete for a roster spot with Bruno Fernando at the center position. The Rockets currently have 20 players under contract and will need to waive or trade a player to officially sign Cauley-Stein. It has yet to be reported how the Rockets intend to open up a roster spot. 

Cauley-Stein has been a serviceable backup center throughout his career. He is an active defender and a strong roll man due to his length and athleticism. 

He’s coming off the worst season of his career after playing in only 20 games and posting the lowest block percentage and true shooting percentage of his career between the Dallas Mavericks and Philadelphia 76ers.  

Cauley-Stein will have an uphill battle making the Rockets roster out of training camp. Alperen Sengun is set to be the Rockets starting center, and Usman Garuba, also a 2021 first-round pick, is expected to be the backup. Boban Marjanovic remains on the roster, and the Rockets signed Bruno Fernando earlier in the offseason. Even if Marjanovic is moved or waived, it still leaves one roster spot for two centers. 

N.B. Lindberg

N.B. Lindberg

N.B. has been a freelance writer since 2019 and was the site expert at Space City Scoop from 2020 to 2023. Before venturing into sports writing, he taught English in China, coached youth baseball, and did data analysis for an MLB agent. He's also a podcast producer, creator, and talent on "Above the Break," a weekly NBA podcast. Played college baseball at Loyola University New Orleans and majored in History, focusing on the development of European hegemony in the 18th and 19th centuries.