The Donatas Motiejunas saga has taken another strange turn.
According to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, Motiejunas was a no-show for his scheduled physical on Tuesday with the Rockets, who are now said to be weighing their options.
Donatas Motiejunas was a no show for his physical this morning, source said. Rockets weighing options.
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) December 6, 2016
The Lithuanian big man’s agent, B.J. Armstrong, confirmed that his client would not be reporting to the team at all.
Motiejunas' agent, B.J. Armstrong: "We have our rights. We're not going to show up. We'll see what happens. We'll see what the Rockets do."
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) December 6, 2016
Motiejunas, a restricted free agent, signed a four-year offer sheet with the Brooklyn Nets last week, but Houston chose to match and retain him.
Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical adds that Houston can either wait Motiejunas out or return him to restricted free agency (though he would not be able to sign with the Nets for at least a year this time around).
Rockets options: Leave open current offer/deal and wait, or return Motiejunas to restricted free agency. He couldn't sign w/ Nets for a year
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) December 6, 2016
A messy situation further complicated by concerns over the health of Motiejunas’ back, the stalemate has already lasted over a month into the NBA season, and there doesn’t appear to be an end in sight any time soon.
