SAN ANTONIO, Aug. 27 (UPI) -- The San Antonio Spurs have added a veteran presence to their frontcourt without leaving the state of Texas by signing free agent seven-footer Kevin Willis.
Terms were not disclosed, but the San Antonio Express News reported it is a one-year, $1 million deal, the minimum for a veteran with at least 10 years' experience.
Willis, who weighs 245 pounds and turns 40 on Sept. 6, returned to the Houston Rockets last season and averaged 6.1 points and 5.8 rebounds in 52 games. It was his second stint with Houston during an 18-year career that also has included stops in Atlanta, Miami, Golden State, Toronto and Denver.
"We started talking about 10 days ago," Willis said. "When I knew they were serious, I said, 'Yeah, I can play with those guys.' Even when I was in Houston, I always figured it would be nice to play here."
The 11th overall pick in the 1984 draft out of Michigan State has career averages of 13.1 points and 9.0 rebounds per contest while ranking 11th in NBA history with 1,271 games played.
His best season was 1991-92, when he averaged 18.3 points and was second in the league with 15.5 rebounds in 81 games with the Hawks. He was selected to play in the 1992 All-Star Game and was named to the All-NBA Third Team.
He will spell another aging seven-footer, David Robinson, who has back problems and has said he will retire after the 2002-03 campaign.
Ironically, Willis grabbed his 10,000th career rebound in a 93-91 win over the Spurs on March 26, 1999.
