Houston Rockets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Texas Notes: Iwundu, Wall, White, Hammon

January 9th, 2021 at 6:39pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks‘ quarantine issues could give Wesley Iwundu his first real opportunity since joining the team as a free agent last month, writes Eddie Sefko of NBA.com. Dallas is playing without Josh Richardson, Dorian Finney-Smith and Jalen Brunson, who are all out of action for at least a week.

Iwundu has gotten into four games so far, but is averaging just 5.0 minutes per night. He spent his first three seasons with the Magic before getting an offer from the Mavericks.

“Coming to Dallas, the focus on winning is higher,” Iwundu said. “You have a better team, better players and it’s just something you got to come in with that mindset that you want to get better each and every day.”

There’s more from the Lone Star State:

John Wall believes the Rockets‘ bench can be among the best in the league, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Wall often plays alongside the reserves, who are shooting 50% from the field, which is the best among NBA bench units. “I know I can score the ball,” Wall said. “At the same time, I can put pressure on the defense pushing the pace, running pick-and-rolls. And I can find my shooters, guys like Eric Gordon, Ben McLemore, DeMarcus (Cousins) out there, Jae’Sean Tate, Sterling Brown, (David) Nwaba. I have guys that can make shots.”
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich expects guard Derrick White to miss four to six weeks with a fractured toe, tweets Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. White had surgery on the toe in August and was sidelined through the first four games of the regular season. He reinjured it on New Year’s Day.
Popovich confirmed that assistant coach Becky Hammon is one of the Spurs‘ staff members not with the team because of health and safety protocols (Twitter link from Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News). Two staffers and reserve big man Drew Eubanks have been required to quarantine.

Wood Refused To Fold En Route To Long-Term Security Of Current Deal

January 9th, 2021 at 1:48pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

New Rockets star center Christian Wood struggled with going undrafted out of UNLV in 2015 and being waived by several NBA clubs before getting the security of the three-year, $41MM contract he signed with Houston during the 2020 offseason, as Marc J. Spears of the Undefeated details. “It showed me how hard I worked and how far I came from going from a minimum and non-guaranteed contract to being waived a number of times that I couldn’t even tell you,” Wood said.

Major Gap Between Rockets, Heat In December Harden Talks

January 6th, 2021 at 6:48pm CST by Luke Adams

When they were exploring a possible James Harden trade before the start of the season, the Heat were open to including “a couple” of their young players and their 2025 first-round pick in a package for the star guard, says Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. However, the Rockets‘ asking price was significantly higher.

According to Jackson, even if the Heat had offered Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, Precious Achiuwa, KZ Okpala, and first-round picks in 2025 and 2027 (along with Andre Iguodala and Kelly Olynyk for salary-matching purposes), it’s not clear that would have been enough to satisfy the Rockets.

The Heat reportedly pulled out of Harden discussions on December 21. Jackson writes that team president Pat Riley thinks highly of Harden, but would only be willing to make a deal for the Rockets star at “a price that’s palatable to him and the organization.”

Rockets Notes: Wood, Harden, McLemore, Martin, House, More

January 5th, 2021 at 3:48pm CST by Luke Adams

New Rockets center Christian Wood has been a revelation on offense in Houston so far, but in order to maximize his overall impact, he needs to become a more consistently reliable rim protector, as Kelly Iko of The Athletic writes.

“For us to be a great defense, it’s all about protection in the paint, protecting that rim,” Eric Gordon said on Monday. “If guards come down and they have to think about scoring over Christian Wood, that’s gonna help us.”

According to Iko, rebounding is also an area the Rockets will need to improve. When the team was playing micro-ball last season, its poor rebounding numbers were understandable, but those struggles have carried over to the early part of 2020/21, even with Wood and other big men now part of the rotation. Houston currently ranks 29th in rebounding percentage.

Here’s more on the Rockets:

While James Harden has made it clear that he wants to be traded out of Houston, he still has to prove what sort of sacrifices he’s willing to make if he wants to win a championship, writes Howard Beck of Sports Illustrated. Some executives who spoke to Beck were skeptical that the former MVP would readily change his playing style to help a new team. “James is like Allen Iverson: He wants to win his way and put up historical numbers while he’s winning,” one veteran Eastern Conference executive said. “I would never question their desire to win, but they all want to win on their terms.”
Ben McLemore and KJ Martin, who were self-isolating after reportedly testing positive for COVID-19, have returned to the team but are focusing on improving their conditioning and aren’t traveling to Indiana for Wednesday’s game, says Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Danuel House, who continues to be nagged by a sore back, also won’t be with the club for that game.
In a separate article for The Houston Chronicle, Feigen takes a look at the strong start Sterling Brown has enjoyed after signing with the Rockets as a free agent in November.
Kelly Iko and Tim Cato of The Athletic revisit Stephen Silas‘ days as an assistant coach with the Mavericks and explore how that position helped prepare him for his first head coaching job in Houston.

Rockets Still Seeking Rotation Answers

January 3rd, 2021 at 8:58pm CST by JD Shaw

The Rockets are still searching for answers when it comes to their rotation, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. Houston has a talented roster led by former Most Valuable Player James Harden, but health issues and COVID-19 protocols have prevented Houston from establishing a consistent rotation so far.

Northwest Notes: Russell, Jerome, Hartenstein, Pokuševski

January 3rd, 2021 at 2:06pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

With Timberwolves star center Karl-Anthony Towns still out of commission due to a dislocated wrist, starting guard D’Angelo Russell has struggled as the new focus of the club’s offense, writes The Athletic’s Jon Krawcyznski. The Wolves have lost three straight games in which they have been down by at least 30 points.

Russell has recently been moved by Timberwolves head coach Ryan Saunders to the shooting guard position to play in tandem with distributor Ricky Rubio at the point. “It can’t be different every night. It’s going to be something we’re running with and we’re sticking with and we build from it,” Russell said.

There’s more out of the NBA’s Northwest Division:

Second-year Thunder guard Ty Jerome continues to recover from an ankle injury he incurred in training camp this season, Joe Mussatto of the Oklahoman tweets. “I think [it happened] in the first practice,” head coach Mark Daigneault. said. “He’s back in OKC on a return-to-play, getting his work in.”
Mike Singer of the Denver Post details how the Nuggets signed Isaiah Hartenstein to a two-year, veteran’s minimum deal in free agency this offseason. Hartenstein discusses his frustration with a lack of consistent chances on his prior squad in Houston. “With the Rockets, every time they gave me an opportunity I performed,” Hartenstein said.
Rookie Thunder power forward Aleksej Pokuševski has been placed in the league’s concussion protocol after suffering a concussion in a team practice today, according to a team press release. He has appeared in all five of the Thunder’s outings so far, and is averaging 16.0 MPG.

Southeast Notes: Bonga, Dunn, Bogdanovic, Herro, Robinson

January 1st, 2021 at 6:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Wizards forward Isaac Bonga got benched on Thursday after starting the first four games and coach Scott Brooks said it was simply a numbers game, Kevin Brown of NBC Sports Washington writes. With Rui Hachimura returning from an eye injury and reclaiming his usual spot in the lineup, Brooks had to choose between Bonga and Troy Brown as the backup. He chose Brown. “We’re trying to find minutes for Troy (Brown Jr.) and Bonga, and (Thursday) it was Troy, but who knows who it will be (Friday) night,” Brooks said.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce said he had promising reports regarding guard Kris Dunn‘s arthroscopic right ankle surgery on Tuesday, according to Sarah Spencer of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Dunn is wearing a walking boot and will be re-evaluated in two weeks. The former Bull has yet to make his Atlanta debut. “It sounds as if everything went well, as well as the surgery can go, and he’s staying here at the hotel,” Pierce said. “But he’s post-op and laying low.”
Hawks free agent acquisition Bogdan Bogdanovic has averaged 15.3 PPG on 42.9% shooting from deep but Pierce says his value goes beyond perimeter shooting, Spencer writes in a separate story. “He hasn’t had any bad games,” Pierce said. “Bad games aren’t ‘make or miss.’ He’s taking those shots, I’ll live with them…. I trust his work. I’ve been praising the fact that he’s probably our hardest post-practice worker.”
Would the combination of Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson be enough to satisfy the Rockets in a potential deal with the Heat for James Harden? Not even close, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets. Houston wants “significantly more than that” for Harden, sources inform Jackson.

Southwest Notes: Wall, Adams, Richardson

January 1st, 2021 at 9:04am CST by Arthur Hill

Christian Wood thought new Rockets teammate John Wall was back in “All-Star mode” Thursday as he played his first regular season game in 735 days, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. Wall has been counting the days, as he told reporters after he posted 22 points, six rebounds and nine assists in a win over the Kings.

“It was great, man, just to get out there and have fun,” he said. “When I get between those four lines and once the ball touches my hands after the jump ball, I was fine. I was happy to be able to compete with some of the best guys in this league and (demonstrate) that I have the ability to be one of the best point guards in this league.”

Wall said he feels “amazing” after being sidelined for more than two full years by surgeries on his left heel and a ruptured Achilles tendon. He displayed the explosiveness he had before the injuries, getting six of his eight baskets on layups and dunks. Coach Stephen Silas believes Wall, who has been in quarantine for the past week, will improve as he gets more familiar with playing alongside James Harden.

“They haven’t been together, and we’re still trying to figure it out — who has it and who’s playing off the ball some,” Silas said. “They’re kind of figuring it out on their own with my help. That relationship has to grow and get better and better.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

Wall talked to Shams Charania of The Athletic about the difficulties he faced after the injuries, including the possibility that his foot might have to be amputated (video link). “It was tough,” Wall said. “I went through three or four different infections. So it got to the point where, ‘OK, are you going to have to cut your foot off or not?’ That’s where it got real with me.”
It was fake crowd noise because no fans are allowed in the arena, but the Thunder made sure Pelicans center Steven Adams received a loud ovation in his return to Oklahoma City Thursday night, according to NOLA.com. Adams spent seven years in OKC before being traded to New Orleans during the offseason.
Mavericks guard Josh Richardson patterned his game after Jimmy Butler and can’t believe he was involved in the trade that brought Butler to Miami, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. “I really like Jimmy Butler a lot. Especially when he was rising in Chicago, I was a big fan,” Richardson said. “… And it was crazy like actually being in a Jimmy Butler trade. It was kind of like surreal, because he was one of my favorite players and I was getting traded for him. And that was like a really interesting thing for me.”

Silas Continues To Work Players Into Rotation

December 31st, 2020 at 9:00pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

New Rockets head coach Stephen Silas is continuing to work Houston’s newly-available players into his game planning as they come back from COVID-19 health protocols, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.

Latest On James Harden

December 31st, 2020 at 9:07am CST by Luke Adams

In his latest look at the James Harden situation, Brian Windhorst of ESPN lists the Sixers, Nets, Heat, Celtics, and Raptors among the teams that have at least placed “courtesy calls” to the Rockets about the former MVP.

And while the Bucks reportedly don’t have interest in pursuing Harden, they did have an internal conversation about the possibility and ran it by Giannis Antetokounmpo before coming to that decision, Windhorst notes.

The Harden trade talk that dominated NBA headlines during the preseason has died down to some extent now that the season is underway and the 31-year-old is suiting up for the Rockets, but Windhorst believes it’s just a matter of time before a team convinces itself that Harden is the missing piece for a championship and pulls the trigger on a deal, like Toronto did for Kawhi Leonard in 2018.

Here’s more on Harden:

Although the Nuggets have been linked to Harden directly, they’re also interested in potentially getting involved in a multi-team trade involving the star guard even if they don’t end up with him, according to Windhorst.
Sam Amick of The Athletic wonders if the loss of scoring depth caused by Spencer Dinwiddie‘s ACL injury may motivate the Nets to push harder to acquire Harden. Of course, as we discussed earlier this week, Dinwiddie’s injury also diminishes the value of a player who likely would be part of any package the Nets offer.
Within that same Athletic article, Amick examines where things stand for the other teams linked to Harden, writing that the Sixers remain content to continue evaluating their current roster under Doc Rivers before making any major changes, while the Bucks don’t view Harden as a fit for their culture. Amick also evaluates the Heat, Nuggets, Trail Blazers, and Raptors, but doesn’t suggest that there’s traction on any front.