Center Daniel Theis has signed a $36 million, four-year deal with the Houston Rockets agents Michael Tellem & Aaron Mintz informed ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski Monday.Sources told ESPN that the Rockets will use the $8.28 million trade exemption created by the Victor Oladipo agreement with the Miami Heat in order to acquire Theis in sign-and-trade negotiations with the Chicago Bulls. This allows the Rockets their $9.5 million midlevel exemption and creates a large trade exception for Bulls.The Rockets expect that Theis, who is 29 years old, will be a strong, experienced, and defensive-minded addition to their young core. Christian Wood, Kevin Porter Jr., and Jalen Green were the 2nd overall picks.Theis, who is 6'8 and 245 lbs, has shown himself to be a versatile big-man. He can compete against any center, except when he's up against 76ers star Joel Embiid.Theis was able to replace Al Horford in the Boston Celtics' starting lineup for 2019-20. He was a key player in coach Brad Stevens’ rotation until he was traded by the Celtics to avoid the luxury tax. Theis played alongside All-Star Nikola Vucevic in Chicago and showed some of his versatility, helping them reach the 2020 Eastern Conference finals.Theis, a German native with many seasons of experience in Europe, averaged 9.4 point, 6.0 rebound and 1.1 blocks per match over the past two seasons.
