Houston Rockets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Rockets Sign Cameron Oliver Via Hardship Exception

May 10th, 2021 at 12:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

MAY 10: The Rockets have officially signed Oliver via a hardship exception, the team announced today in a press release. While Houston classifies it as a 10-day contract, there are only seven days left in the regular season, so it won’t technically cover 10 full days.

MAY 9: Center Cameron Oliver has agreed to a 10-day contract with the Rockets that will cover the remainder of the regular season, according to Olgun Uluc of ESPN.

Oliver, 24, recently completed his second season with the Cairns Taipans in Australia’s National Basketball League, averaging 17.3 points, 10 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. He is still under contract with the Taipans for the 2021/22 season, so his NBA stay figures to be brief.

Oliver is one of the top centers in Australia, according to Uluc, with elite athleticism and a shooting range stretching beyond the three-point line. He will join former Sydney Kings player Jae’Sean Tate and coach Will Weaver in Houston.

Oliver has a history with the Rockets, points out Ben DuBose of USA Today’s Rockets Wire. After going undrafted out of Nevada in 2017, Oliver signed with Houston and participated in training camp that year. He played two seasons in the G League before going to Australia.

The Rockets have a full roster, DuBose adds, but could add Oliver without another move if they get a second hardship exception from the league. With a roster severely depleted by injuries, Houston recently used its first hardship exception to add Khyri Thomas.

Heath Updates: Porzingis, Kleber, J. Brown, R. Williams, Hunter, Carter, Bradley

May 9th, 2021 at 10:54am CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks are in good shape to avoid a play-in game, but they may have to finish the regular season without big men Kristaps Porzingis and Maxi Kleber, writes Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News.

Porzingis has already been declared out for today’s game against the Cavaliers, marking the sixth straight game he will miss and the ninth in the last 10 games. He suffered a sprained left ankle on March 22, then returned three games later and had to leave with soreness in his right knee. He tested the knee before Friday’s game, shooting for about 15 minutes.

Kleber has sat out the past three games with pain in his right Achilles. He is officially listed as questionable for today, but coach Rick Carlisle doesn’t expect him to play.

“Not having Kleber or Porzingis puts us in a more precarious situation,” Carlisle said. “But we’ve just got to figure it out. Five games left. Every game is super meaningful. We understand it. We’re just going to stay in the present, stick to the process and keep working.”

Here are some more injury-related updates:

Celtics forward Jaylen Brown will miss today’s showdown with the Heat because of a sprained right ankle, tweets Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald. The team had hoped Brown could be ready, but he will sit out his third straight game. Robert Williams is considered probable for today with turf toe, but coach Brad Stevens said there will be a lot of game-time decisions for him for the rest of the season, Murphy adds (via Twitter).
Hawks forward D e’Andre Hunter will be a game-time decision at best on Monday, according to Kevin Chouinard of NBA.com (Twitter link). Coach Nate McMillan indicated that a final decision will be made after today’s practice and Monday’s walkthrough. Hunter has missed the past 24 games and has only played twice since January 29.
Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. is dealing with blurry vision and slightly impaired depth perception, tweets Josh Robbins of The Athletic. He will miss tonight’s game with a left eye abrasion (Twitter link).
Rockets coach Stephen Silas said there’s no timetable for a return by guard Avery Bradley, who is out for personal reasons, relays Mark Berman of Fox 26 in Houston (Twitter link).

Texas Notes: Wall, Thomas, White, Green, Carlisle

May 8th, 2021 at 11:52am CST by marksuleymanov

With John Wall‘s first season with the Rockets over, Kelly Iko and John Hollinger of The Athletic examined the initial impressions the veteran guard made in Houston, considering whether or not he fits into the team’s future long-term.

Wall was a perennial All-Star with the Wizards early in his career, but a series of injuries cost him significant portions of the past three seasons. As Iko and Hollinger write, Wall has to be commended for the mere fact that he returned to the court and played significant minutes, showing glimpses of his past explosiveness.

However, both scribes also noted that despite those glimpses, Wall appeared to be a fraction of the player he used to be, raising questions about his ability to even remain a starting point guard for the rest of his career. The hefty sum remaining on his contract will make it difficult to trade and therefore, it remains to be seen how the Rockets, or any team, would deploy him moving forward.

Check more news out of the NBA’s Texas squads:

Newly-signed Rockets forward Khyri Thomas contributed 16 points in his first game and expressed gratitude for the opportunity, tweets Mark Berman of FOX 26. “I’m never gonna take this opportunity for granted, whether it’s 10-day or a whole year,” he said. “I’m not trying to go out and be Michael Jordan. Just trying to fit in.”
Having established himself as a long-term keeper for the Spurs, Derrick White is now working on being a more vocal leader, as Spencer Davies of BasketballNews.com writes. “The front office and (head coach Gregg Popovich) have been on me (about) trying to be more of a leader,” White said. “It’s something that I’m continuing to develop in. The more confidence you have, the more you’re doing the right things, the more you can hold other people accountable. So it’s a constant thing that I’m developing, and hopefully I just keep getting better and better at it.”
The Spurs could conceivably make the play-in tournament without doing much winning as the regular season winds down. However, the team is looking to achieve more than just sneaking into the new postseason format, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News writes.
Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle is taking a nuanced view toward the play-in tournament, which Dallas could find itself participating in without a strong finish to the season. Carlisle said the goal should be to avoid the tournament altogether, but if it’s an option, it should be “embraced” and could be a valuable experience to a young team, tweets Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News.
As the Mavericks have shown a willingness to be shifty and open-minded with their lineups, Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News wonders if it’s time to give rookie Josh Green more playing time.

And-Ones: Brown, Bates, Afflalo, All-Underrated Team

May 7th, 2021 at 7:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Milwaukee Common Council has approved a $750K settlement in a lawsuit brought by former Bucks player Sterling Brown over his 2018 arrest, according to an Associated Press report. Brown was taken to the ground and shocked with a Taser after he was approached by police over a parking violation.

As part of the settlement, Brown was given an apology from the city and Milwaukee police that “recognizes that the incident escalated in an unnecessary manner and despite Mr. Brown’s calm behavior.” It also requires the city to commit to changes in the police department’s standard operating procedures. Brown is currently playing for the Rockets.

We have more news and notes from around the basketball world:

High school star Emoni Bates decommitted from Michigan State and ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeff Borzello take a look at where Bates might end up. Bates, who is currently attending a prep school created by his father, won’t be eligible for the draft until 2023. Numerous colleges have made offers to Bates after he decommitted but he still has another year to go before he pursue that route. He could take the G League route if he graduates this spring but would have to stay there for two years due to the NBA’s age limit.
Former NBA player Arron Afflalo was part of a group that tried to purchase the Timberwolves and Afflalo is continuing to seek other opportunities to become a part-owner of a franchise. The Athletic’s David Aldridge spoke with Afflalo about his conversations with the Timberwolves and other topics.
Rudy Gobert, Jrue Holiday and De’Anthony Melton top the list of players on John Hollinger’s All-Underrated Team. The Athletic columnist lists his top 10 in that category, plus another group of that made his Honorable Mention list.

Rockets Sign Khyri Thomas Via Hardship Exception

May 7th, 2021 at 4:06pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

MAY 7: The Rockets have officially signed Thomas, the team announced today in a press release. Since Houston was granted a hardship exception as a result of all their injuries, no corresponding roster move was required.

Houston announced the deal as a 10-day contract — there are only 10 days left in the regular season, so it’ll cover the team’s remaining games.

MAY 5: Free agent shooting guard Khyri Thomas is set to ink a new deal with the Rockets, according to Kelly Iko and Alykhan Bijani of The Athletic (Twitter link). Terms of the agreement have yet to be disclosed, but Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle suggests it could be a 10-day contract.

Selected with the No. 38 pick in the 2018 draft, Thomas spent his first two NBA seasons with the Pistons. The 6’3″ wing logged time across 34 games during his two seasons with Detroit, averaging 7.5 MPG.

Thomas and swingman Tony Snell were sent by the Pistons to the Hawks in exchange for Dewayne Dedmon during the 2020 offseason, and Thomas was quickly released by Atlanta. The 24-year-old Creighton alum was mostly recently signed to an Exhibit 10 deal with the Spurs, but San Antonio waived him before he could play a regular season game with the club.

Given that they are already eliminated from playoff contention with a 16-49 record, it makes sense for the tanking Rockets to take a flyer on a young player with some upside during the waning days of the 2020/21 regular season. Houston has seven games remaining in its schedule.

The Rockets will need to waive someone in order to make room for Thomas unless they’re granted a hardship exception that allows them to add an extra player. That’s a possibility, given all the injuries the team is dealing with.

13 Of Rockets' 17 Players On Injury Report

May 7th, 2021 at 1:56pm CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have a whopping 13 players on their injury report for Friday’s contest in Milwaukee, writes Danielle Lerner of The Houston Chronicle. Kevin Porter Jr. (ankle) and Avery Bradley (personal) are among nine players who have been ruled out. And, as Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle points out (via Twitter), the four players not on the injury report have made 10 combined NBA starts.
The Rockets did get one piece of good news today, as Feigen tweets that Jae’Sean Tate has cleared the health and safety protocols. Tate registered a false positive for COVID-19, followed by three negative tests. However, he’s still listed as questionable for Friday’s game due to a left knee contusion.

Tate Placed Under League's Protocols

May 6th, 2021 at 9:58pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Rockets, who already have numerous players sitting out, added another one to the inactive list when forward Jae’Sean Tate was placed under the league’s health and safety protocols, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. The undrafted rookie has appeared in 65 games, including 53 starts, averaging 11.2 PPG and 5.4 RPG.

Wood Expects To Miss Some Games

May 3rd, 2021 at 9:20pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The status of Rockets big man Christian Wood this week and the remainder of the season is in doubt. Wood said he’ll likely to need to sit out at least a couple of games, Mark Berman of FOX26 tweets. “Right now with my ankle and my quad, I’m not sure about (playing) the next couple games,” he said.

Bradley Nears Return; Feigen On Porter, Martin

May 2nd, 2021 at 1:46pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Rockets reserve guard Avery Bradley is close to returning to the floor from a calf injury, writes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Bradley has missed the past two games for Houston, and four of the last five.

Though recently-acquired Rockets swingman Kevin Porter Jr. enjoyed a career night against the Bucks on Thursday, head coach Stephen Silas is hopeful Porter can have more consistently effective scoring nights, writes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. “I don’t really know if we have a true feel for how good he can be or not,” Silas observed. “I think if you take the game that he had against Minnesota (10 points on 2-of-12 shooting) and the game he had against Milwaukee, you don’t want to really focus on either. You want to focus somewhere in between. He had a poor game and then a great game. You can’t do that in an NBA season where you’re kind of going up and down, up and down with your emotions or your evaluations.”
Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle appraises the growth of athletic rookie wing Kenyon Martin Jr., the youngest Rockets player. Martin is all too aware of what he needs to improve going forward to achieve his full potential. “I know what I need to work on and I need to focus on to get ready for next season,” Martin said. “Making my shot more consistent… Being comfortable on the ball and defensively, just learning from watching film and picking it up on that side of the floor.” Martin is averaging 13.5 PPG on 53.8% shooting across his past four games.

Porter Benefitting From Silas Tutelage; Jay Bilas's History With Houston

April 30th, 2021 at 10:00pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

With new Rockets wing Kevin Porter Jr. scoring a career-high 50 points against the Bucks in a 143-136 win, it’s become clear that head coach Stephen Silas feels confident in the promising 20-year-old, writes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. “I was just so proud of him,” Silas raved. “He’s been through quite a bit. To see him free and almost getting into the zone, … it was so fun to watch.” Porter registered his respect for his coach as well. “Really, he just gives me that confidence to go out there and play how I play, play how I’ve been playing all my life,” Porter said. “Once a coach gives you basically a green light and the keys, the sky’s the limit.”
Before ultimately hiring Daryl Morey as the Rockets‘ new general manager in 2007, former Houston owner Leslie Alexander apparently gave serious consideration to former player and current college analyst Jay Bilas for the position. Bilas told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski during a recent interview on Woj’s podcast that the Rockets offered him the job, but that the two sides couldn’t agree to terms (hat tip to RealGM).