The Houston Rockets signed All-Star guard James Harden to a four-year, $118 million contract extension Saturday.The deal assures the Rockets of one additional year of Harden under contract in 2018-19 because of a player option that could return him to free agency in 2019, league sources told The Vertical.Harden's salary for next season will be $26.5 million under the new salary cap and increase incrementally over the course of the deal.Rockets owner Leslie Alexander made the announcement at a news conference Saturday."I'm happy to be here for four more years," Harden said. "This is home for me."The 26-year-old Harden averaged 29 points, 7.5 assists and 6.1 rebounds for the Rockets last season.--New Chicago Bulls guard Dwyane Wade joined New York Knicks star forward Carmelo Anthony in speaking out against recent gun violence that has dominated the news.Both athletes expressed their demands for social change in the wake of police shootings of African-American men and the sniper who killed... [More]

The Sacramento Kings signed free agent guards Arron Afflalo and Garrett Temple, and forwards Matt Barnes and Anthony Tolliver on Saturday.Terms of the agreements were not disclosed by the team.Afflalo has career averages of 11.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 28.7 minutes per game in nine NBA seasons.Barnes returns to the Kings as a 13-year NBA veteran after spending the 2015-16 season with the Memphis Grizzlies. Last season, he had career highs in field goal attempts per game (9.1), free throw percentage (80.4 percent) and tied a career-best with 5.5 rebounds per contest. He owns career averages of 8.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 23.6 minutes per game.Tolliver, a 10-year NBA veteran, has career averages of 6.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 19.6 minutes per game. He played 72 games with the Detroit Pistons last season.Temple spent the previous four seasons with the Washington Wizards, where he averaged 4.6 points and 1.5 assists in 17.4 minutes per game."Adding... [More]

Sacramento Kings rookie center Georgios Papagiannis underwent a precautionary MRI Saturday after experiencing left knee stiffness during the week.The results indicated no structural damage and his playing status will be assessed on Sunday. He is listed as questionable for Sunday's NBA Summer League game in Las Vegas against the Houston Rockets.Papagiannis, a 7-foot-2 center, was the No. 13 pick of the NBA draft last month by the Phoenix Suns and traded to the Kings. He played professionally for his native Greece since 2012.