Rockets land surprise meeting with Kent Bazemore

The Rockets are meeting with Atlanta Hawks free agent guard/forward Kent Bazemore tonight as free agent negotiations have started.

As first reported by Shams Charania of Yahoo! Sports, the Rockets are preparing a big pitch for Bazemore, who was not planning on meeting with any teams until July 5th. James Harden will reportedly be present for the meeting.

The 27-year old Bazemore averaged 11.6 points for the Hawks last season, hitting 35.7% from three-point range, to go with 5.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists. He’s an athletic player with upside that has a history with Mike D’Antoni from the 2013-14 Lakers.

Bazemore is going to get overpaid in free agency, without a doubt, but he would be a very good addition here. He’s a three-and-D wing who has experience defending some of the league’s best players, sporting a near-seven foot wingspan that gives opponents trouble. He also has shown to be an effective catch-and-shoot three-point shooter, a skill that would be in demand from role players alongside Harden.