5:12pm: The Rockets have officially waived Days and converted Williams to a two-way contract, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.
2:27pm: The Rockets are waiving forward Darius Days ahead of Monday’s regular season roster deadline, a source tells Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required).
Days, who turned 24 on Friday, had been on a two-way contract with Houston, having accepted his qualifying offer from the team at the start of the offseason. He spent the entire 2022/23 season on a two-way deal with the Rockets, appearing in just four NBA games but enjoying an excellent year for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston’s G League affiliate.
In 47 total regular season and Showcase Cup games for the Vipers last season, Days averaged 21.9 points and 9.2 rebounds in 33.5 minutes per contest, posting a shooting line of .487/.359/.816. He finished third in NBAGL Rookie of the Year voting and claimed a spot on the All-G League second team.
Despite Days’ strong 2022/23 campaign, he became the victim of a roster crunch this fall, as the Rockets needed to open up a two-way slot for preseason standout Jeenathan Williams, per Feigen.
A 6’5″ shooting guard, Williams put up 8.6 PPG on 63.3% shooting despite logging just 10.2 MPG in five preseason appearances. He had been on an Exhibit 10 contract but remained on the roster through Saturday, which is when virtually every other player on an Exhibit 10 deal was cut so that they could clear waivers before the regular season began. That was a signal that the Rockets intended to keep him around by converting him to a two-way contract.
Once Houston officially waives Days, converts Williams, and cuts Robinson-Earl – whose fate was reported earlier this afternoon – the team will be within the regular season roster limit, carrying 15 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals.