However, after they drafted Eddie Griffin, things changed and the Rockets instead focused on re-signing their own guys, ultimately dealing Hakeem Olajuwon and Shandon Anderson in sign-and-trade arrangements, and re-signing Maurice Taylor only to lose him weeks later to a major injury.

On the other hand, Webber signed a $120+ million deal, a deal he couldn't have gotten anywhere else without a trade. But Webber obviously was hurt by the lack of interest in him around the league.

Claiming he wasn't considering any place other San Antonio, Detroit and Indiana, Webber took shots at the Rockets. "I would love to play with Tim Duncan or Steve Francis or those guys, but truthfully none of those teams are better than ours, I just feel."

Webber went on to speak specifically about the Rockets, saying they simply didn't pursue him aggressively. "Steve Francis told me they thought I was cocky, and I'm going to try to kill them every year for that. Steve and Cuttino Mobley told me they thought that I didn't want to go there, that I was cocky and didn't want to play there. But I really was interested. I don't know how interested, but I know that's the feeling the team had."