The Rockets have many decisions to make this offseason, with Yao Ming being a free agent and the team still not having a clear direction, but one person who they might have to start thinking about is stalwart reserve Chuck Hayes. Hayes, 27, has been on the team for his entire career and will be eligible for free agency after this season. So is Hayes thinking about Boston? New York? Miami?
↵↵↵"I want to be here," Hayes said. "This is home for me. This has been home for me for six years. Houston is all I know. Houston is all I want to know."
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Very refreshing to hear someone say that after watching Rockets GM Daryl Morey have a hard time courting players to join the Rockets over the past few years. So, does Morey actually want Hayes back?
↵↵↵"For sure Chuck fits in," general manager Daryl Morey said. "We're hoping to bring him back. Obviously, he's (going to be) a free agent. It's going to be up to him where he goes. We're excited to work to bring him back."
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Morey obviously would understand Hayes' value more than anyone else around the league. Hayes probably shouldn't get as many minutes as he received this year on a good team, but as the third or fourth big man in a rotation, he brings a lot to the table with his defense and rebounding. It will be interesting to see if any other teams around the league got the memo and try to bait the Rockets into paying more for Hayes than he's actually worth.
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