Rockets to meet with Andre Iguodala

Iguodala's wild free agency had him on verge of leaving Warriors for Western Conference rival

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July 1, 11 a.m. ET: Harden, CP3 crash Rockets party
The Rockets arrived to the hotel an hour early for their noon ET meeting, prompting Rosenthal to call general manager Daryl Morey to make sure there wasn't a miscommunication. There wasn't. They were just ready to go.

When it was time to meet, Morey, who was joined by then-owner Les Alexander, assistant GM Gersson Rosas, head coach Mike D'Antoni and chief executive officer Tad Brown, focused on how, with the addition of Iguodala, they could beat the Warriors in a seven-game series. He also detailed how the Rockets are well-positioned for the future and how Iguodala would save money due to no state taxes in Texas and the relatively cheap cost of living in Houston. (California has the highest state income tax rate in the nation.)

D'Antoni discussed the NBA's new brand of basketball and his vision to push the pace on offense. He also emphasized improving defensively, highlighting a fearsome foursome of Chris Paul, Eric Gordon, Trevor Ariza and Iguodala as a switch-everything recipe to cover the league's most potent offenses.

Iguodala was impressed and soaked it all in, sources said, but what really grabbed his attention was what happened next. Morey's phone began to ring and, surprisingly, he answered. It was James Harden, who was unaware the meeting was happening at that time and called about an unrelated matter.

Harden apologized to Morey for interrupting.

"That's OK," Morey said. "I'll always answer for you."

Harden then asked Morey to hand Iguodala the phone. The Beard didn't attempt a recruiting pitch, but expressed his regret for intervening and wished him good luck with the process before hanging up.

The two sides carried on with the meeting until newly acquired Rockets point guard Chris Paul stormed into the suite and took over the presentation, multiple sources said. Iguodala, Rosenthal and Cline-Thomas were stunned.

Paul, who had been a Rocket for just four days, raved about the closeness of the team and the transparency within the organization for about 20 minutes. He revealed that the franchise's openness was something he has never experienced in the NBA. Iguodala was captivated.

The Rockets didn't have cap space, so all that was available was their mid-level exception. They offered him a four-year deal worth $32 million. But Morey, a mastermind at maneuvering through the cap, began jotting down -- right there on the conference table -- lucrative sign-and-trade scenarios like a mad scientist, sources said. It was understood that this would be the lone route at persuading Iguodala to join the team.

The meeting lasted almost two hours and was termed as "the best recruiting presentation of all time," according to a source within Iguodala's camp.

Afterward, sources said Iguodala canceled all subsequent meetings with the Sixers, LA Clippers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz, and began investigating sign-and-trade possibilities.

The Rockets left without a commitment, but there was strong sentiment that he was Houston-bound.

July 1, 7 p.m. ET: Welcome back, Warriors
When Bob Myers and Steve Kerr entered Iguodala's presidential suite, the conference table in the room was overflowing with Houston Rockets-themed items -- virtual reality 3D glasses, an iPad, promotional magazines and presentation packets -- left over from the free-agent meeting that morning. Kerr, in true whimsical fashion, put on the glasses.

The Warriors were granted a last-minute assembly out of respect. Iguodala had reopened the lines of communication with the Warriors and told Myers that if he still wanted to talk to "get down here."

The Warriors had been in the dark for a day and a half and contacted representatives of free-agent small forwards Rudy Gay and Gerald Henderson as a contingency plan. But Myers immediately hopped on a plane from the Bay Area and Kerr was already in Los Angeles, having recently visited with free agent Nick Young. They didn't know it, but Iguodala's objective in sitting down with them was to personally say goodbye, sources with knowledge of the situation told ESPN.

Iguodala and Myers are close. Their conversations center around family, business and world matters. Kerr is one of the few coaches who gets Iguodala and all of his quirks. It wasn't going to be easy for Iguodala to deliver the news during this sit-down.

Myers and Kerr came prepared to offer him a fully guaranteed, three-year deal worth $45 million and reiterated that their latest offer still wasn't indicative of what they believed to be his true worth. Their hands were just tied.

There was little hope for a resolution at this point. Iguodala wasn't budging from his request to make at least $16 million per year. If the Warriors didn't improve their offer, he was signing with the Rockets, sources said.

After an hour, both sides departed and a breakup appeared likely. Iguodala's camp proceeded to discuss their options. The Warriors' top reserve was inching closer to becoming a top reserve for the Rockets. But before Rosenthal was to call Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Antonio and Golden State to notify them of his client's decision, sources said Iguodala elected to make his final, most defining move yet: calling Golden State one more time.

On his way back to the airport, Myers received a call from Rosenthal, who wanted to see if there was a way to bridge that gap, but reaffirmed that Iguodala's asking price was concrete. Myers said he would contact Lacob, but couldn't make any promises.

Twenty minutes later, Myers called back.

"I got it," he said.

On July 27, Iguodala took center stage in front of a large crowd once more. The Warriors star and Cline-Thomas were keynote speakers at The Morgan Stanley NextGen Software Summit in Deer Valley, Utah. More than 100 Silicon Valley CEOs were in attendance as the duo responded to questions about their recent contract negotiations.

"When players understand they can gather their own information, and the importance of empathy in negotiations, we'll be doing our own deals," Iguodala said during the session.

Iguodala never wanted to leave Golden State. His heart and greatest career achievements -- on and off the hardwood -- are tied to the Bay Area. It's where his family is rooted and where he and his teammates have a chance to be mentioned among the ranks of the Lakers and Celtics as one of the greatest teams in NBA history. Still, Iguodala's intention was always to take care of business first and foremost. And he did just that.

Aided by Rosenthal and Cline-Thomas, Iguodala never wavered from what he felt was appropriate compensation. The Warriors knew he had other offers and sensed he could very well bolt. And in the end, Myers, the two-time NBA Executive of the Year, got ownership to meet Iguodala's demands with a fully guaranteed three-year, $48 million contract, keeping the Warriors' championship core together.

"I've said it before," Kerr told ESPN, "Andre should become an agent when he retires. He was prepared."​