The Houston Rockets are reportedly re-signing veteran center Boban Marjanović on a one-year contract, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The 35-year-old appeared in 31 games for the Rockets last season, averaging 3.3 points and 1.9 rebounds per contest while shooting 68.3 percent from the floor.
Marjanović previously played for the San Antonio Spurs (2015-16), Detroit Pistons (2016-17 to 2017-18), Los Angeles Clippers (2017-18 to 2018-19), Philadelphia 76ers (2018-19) and Dallas Mavericks (2019-20 to 2021-22), averaging 5.6 points and 3.6 rebounds for his career.
The Serbian big man has always been a reserve player, making only 25 starts in the NBA, a role he'll reprise in Houston. It's unlikely he'll see many minutes, with Alperen Şengün and Jock Landale expected to earn the majority of time at the position, though the latter is recovering from an ankle injury.
Regardless, Marjanović was a big hit with his younger Rockets' teammates last season, providing a valuable veteran presence.
"No matter if he plays 20 minutes or if he plays zero, he's the same person," Jabari Smith Jr. told Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle in March. "Always encouraging, first guy in the gym, last to leave every day. Great teammate, someone you can lean on, talk to. I'm pretty sure everybody would say the same thing."
Head coach Stephen Silas concurred:
"Being around Boban is just amazing. He is a bright light every single day. He is a great worker. You have a choice of how you're going to be when you walk in the building, and he chooses every single day to be positive. He chooses every single day to be happy. He chooses every single day to be helpful to his teammates. But he's also very committed to his work, to his routine. You'll see him out there playing one-on-three with interns just so he can stay sharp and stay ready for when his time comes."
His time may not come often this season, but it sounds as though there will be a lot of happy people in Houston now that he's returning.
