Houston Rockets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Central Notes: Pistons, Beasley, Haliburton, Giannis, Jackson

February 27th, 2025 at 10:54am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons delivered a statement victory on Wednesday, defeating the Celtics — who entered with a six-game winning streak — by 20 points. Detroit has won eight straight, its longest streak since the 2007/08 season.

“We knew this was going to be a tough challenge for us, but we’re just focused on the process of it all,” coach J.B. Bickerstaff said, per Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. “We’re not looking past tonight or at what we’ve done in the past. The only thing we’re focusing on is every single night trying to be the best version of ourselves and tonight I think we were pretty close.”

Malik Beasley, a free agent after the season, continued to provide a huge boost off the bench with 26 points in 22 minutes.

“That shot-making ability just lifts people up,” Bickerstaff said. “When he’s hot and that ball’s in the air, you can tell when the ball leaves his hands and is taking the crowd’s breath away.”

We have more from the Central Division:

Tyrese Haliburton looks rejuvenated after some rest and relaxation during the All-Star break, Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star notes. Over the last four games, the Pacers guard is averaging 25.8 points per game on 63.2% shooting, including 52.6% of his 3-point attempts. He’s also averaging 11.8 assists during that stretch, compared to just 1.0 turnover per game. “I’m just playing free, having fun,” Haliburton said. “It always helps to see the first one go in. You just kind of react from there. I just thought I did a good job of staying aggressive all night, doing what was needed.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo was yanked to the floor via a hard foul by Houston’s Amen Thompson Tuesday night but the Bucks superstar said he had “no hard feelings” toward the Rockets‘ wing, according to Kristie Rieken of The Associated Press. Thompson was ejected after an officials’ review. “At the end of the day like you don’t wanna have a league that’s soft,” Antetokounmpo said. “I love guys that play hard. I love guys that they’re great competitors. I’m one of those guys. Sometimes your competitive nature gets in the way (of) making the best decision, the best judgment at the time. And I feel like he wanted to make it a hard foul, but he grabbed my neck.”
Bucks guard Andre Jackson Jr. has seen his minutes shrink this month and coach Doc Rivers indicated that roster moves are the reason, Eric Nehm of The Athletic tweets. “Midseason trade. We brought in other guys that I think fill his role,” Rivers said. “His numbers were not great, with Giannis on the floor, those two guys together.”

Southwest Notes: Wells, Boston, Pelicans, VanVleet

February 26th, 2025 at 7:27pm CST by Rory Maher

Grizzlies wing Jaylen Wells has been one of the pleasant surprises of last year’s rookie class. As Spencer Davies of RG.org writes, the 21-year-old has been not just a rotation mainstay but a starter for the West’s No. 2 seed, averaging 11.4 points and 3.2 rebounds on .451/.382/.824 shooting in 25.8 minutes per game while taking on challenging defensive assignments. He also hasn’t missed a game thus far in 2024/25.

Wells is used to being underestimated, having played at Division II Sonoma State prior to transferring to Washington for the ’23/24 campaign. Despite being a second-round pick (No. 39 overall), he currently has the second-best betting odds for Rookie of the Year, only trailing Stephon Castle of the Spurs.

“I mean, I don’t really focus on it,” Wells told Davies of the ROY race. “I’m focused on getting a championship. And if it just so happens… I feel like if I’m playing winning basketball, it should fall right into my hands. So that’s kinda how my mindset is.”

According to Davies, Wells’ play has gotten the attention of several stars, including Cavs guard Donovan Mitchell, who recently faced off against Wells and Memphis.

“On the offensive end, I didn’t know he shot it as well as he did, with confidence. He’s kind of made himself a staple over there,” Mitchell said. “They really rely on him to disrupt a lot of different things. He’s definitely really talented, and he’s only gonna get better. I give him a lot of credit for continuing to be that player and not really tripping on if I score or he gets scored on, or if he makes shots, doesn’t make shots. He’s been that way. I’ve been watching it all year, first time in person.”

Here are a few more notes from the Southwest Division:

Fourth-year guard Brandon Boston Jr. received a two-year, minimum-salary contract with a team option for ’25/26 when he was promoted by the Pelicans, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). As Scotto notes, it’s possible New Orleans could decline that option in order to give Boston a longer-term deal in the offseason, though he couldn’t be made a restricted free agent in that scenario.
Boston (left ankle sprain), Bruce Brown (return to play reconditioning) and Kelly Olynyk (rest) are among seven Pelicans who will be sidelined for Thursday’s contest at Phoenix, per Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com. It will be the seventh straight missed game for Boston, who last played on February 8. Veterans Brown and Olynyk, who were acquired from Toronto in the Brandon Ingram trade, are likely being held out of the first end of a back-to-back for precautionary reasons after missing most of the season while recovering from injuries.
Rockets guard Fred VanVleet has been sidelined since Feb. 1 due to a right ankle strain. His ankle’s range of motion is around 80% right now, according to head coach Ime Udoka, so he’ll be out again Wednesday, with the earliest he could return being Saturday vs. Sacramento (subscriber-only story via Danielle Lerner of The Houston Chronicle). VanVleet is averaging 14.6 points, 5.8 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 45 games this season (35.5 MPG).

Southwest Notes: Powell, Christie, Smith Jr., Bagley

February 25th, 2025 at 6:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Mavericks won’t have Anthony Davis when they face the Lakers for the first time since the teams’ blockbuster deal that landed Luka Doncic in Los Angeles. They could get another big man back for the showdown. Dwight Powell, who has missed the last 16 games due to a hip injury, has been upgraded as questionable, Marc Stein tweets.

It’s expected that Powell will be active, Stein adds. Powell has appeared in 33 games off the bench this season, though he’s averaged just 7.6 minutes in those appearances.

The Lakers will honor Davis with a video tribute, NBA insider Chris Haynes tweets.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Another of the players the Mavericks acquired from the Lakers was guard Max Christie. He has given Dallas a boost since the deal, averaging 15.3 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists in eight games. Christie told Andscape’s Marc J. Spears he’ll looking forward to Tuesday’s game but harbors no ill will toward his former team. “I’m not even looking at this game as a ‘revenge game,’” Christie said. “I’m actually looking forward to it from a sense that I get to see old teammates, old colleagues, old coaches. I’m looking forward to just enjoying that game. I want to win, obviously. The Lakers are a playoff team. They’re really, really good. It’s a good test for us as a matchup, as a team as well. But I’m not going in there with any bad blood or any intention of trying to drop 40 on them. I’m just going in there to try to win the game, play my game and let the game come to me.”
Blending Jabari Smith Jr.‘s offensive skills with the current rotation will be a key to the Rockets’ postseason success, Kelly Iko of The Athletic writes. If Houston has any hope of making a deep run, Smith must become more of a focal offensive option, according to Iko. Smith has played two games since recovering from a fractured hand, an injury he suffered on New Year’s Day.
Big man Marvin Bagley III wound up with the Grizzlies in a three-team trade earlier this month. Bagley, the No. 2 pick of the 2018 draft, has only made one brief appearance with Memphis. Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal explores how Bagley might carve out a role with the Grizzlies, his fourth team since entering the league. He’ll be a free agent after the season.

Cody Zeller Expected To Remain Away From Rockets

February 24th, 2025 at 2:02pm CST by Rory Maher

In a salary-dump deal just before the February 6 deadline, the Hawks traded veteran center Cody Zeller and a 2028 second-round pick to Houston to move below the luxury tax threshold.

The 32-year-old big man has been on the Rockets‘ roster and payroll since that move was finalized, but he has not been around the team and the expectation is that arrangement will continue for the remainder of the 2024/25 season, team and league sources tell Kelly Iko of The Athletic.

Zeller was signed to a multiyear contract by the Pelicans last offseason specifically to be used as a salary-matching piece in the Dejounte Murray trade. While he was technically a member of the Hawks for several months, he didn’t participate in training camp with Atlanta and agreed to remain away from the team indefinitely. The Rockets and Zeller have reached a similar agreement, Iko reports.

As Iko explains, the Rockets already had a crowded frontcourt prior to acquiring Zeller, with first-time All-Star Alperen Sengun manning the middle and Steven Adams and Jock Landale serving as the primary backup centers. Jabari Smith and Jeff Green have also been used as small-ball fives at times, Iko notes.

Although he’s taking up a roster spot, it doesn’t sound like Houston has any immediate plans to release Zeller. Iko points out that Zeller’s contract is non-guaranteed beyond this season ($3.68MM in ’25/26 and $3.85MM in ’26/27) and could again be used for salary-matching purposes if the Rockets decide to make trades in the 2025 offseason.

The fourth overall pick of the 2013 draft, Zeller spent his first eight NBA seasons in Charlotte before becoming a journeyman over the past handful of years, spending time with Portland, Miami and New Orleans from 2021-24. He holds career averages of 7.9 points and 5.7 rebounds in 552 regular season games, including 275 starts (20.9 minutes per contest).

Western Notes: Smith, Thybulle, Kuminga, Nuggets, Suns

February 21st, 2025 at 9:17pm CST by Luke Adams

As expected, Rockets forward Jabari Smith returned to action on Friday vs. Minnesota in the team’s first game after the All-Star break. Smith had been out since January 1 due to a fractured hand.

The No. 3 overall pick in the 2022 draft, Smith had started each of his first 188 NBA regular season games, but he came off the bench on Friday for the first time in his professional career. As Danielle Lerner of The Houston Chronicle writes, head coach Ime Udoka explained before the contest that he wanted to take advantage of having Tari Eason available on the first end of a back-to-back and didn’t want to throw Smith into the deep end in his first game action in over seven weeks.

“Tari (is) coming off some really good games and getting him to the minutes where we want him to be,” Udoka said. “But it was just a little bit everything. I think easing (Smith) back into it a little bit, not really conditioning-wise, but you see how he looks in this game and everything’s kind of open moving forward.”

While Eason, Alperen Sengun, Jalen Green, Amen Thompson, and Dillon Brooks made up Houston’s starting five on Friday, Udoka will have some decisions to make once Smith has gotten back to full speed and Fred VanVleet returns from his right ankle injury. The Rockets’ coach said that he hasn’t yet decided what his starting lineup will look like when everyone’s healthy, according to Lerner.

Here are a few more items of interest from around the Western Conference:

Trail Blazers forward Matisse Thybulle, who has yet to play this season due to knee and ankle injuries, has started doing some light 3-on-3 contact work, but hasn’t yet been cleared for 5-on-5 scrimmages, according to head coach Chauncey Billups (Twitter link via Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report). Billups indicated that he isn’t sure how far away Thybulle is from making his season debut.
The Warriors provided an update on Jonathan Kuminga‘s recovery from his right ankle sprain this week, announcing (via Twitter) that he returned to practice on Wednesday. Kuminga has been sidelined since January 4 and head coach Steve Kerr previously stated that he expected the forward to miss the “first few” games after the All-Star break.
According to reporting from Meridian Sport (hat tip to Eurohoops), the Nuggets are hiring former Serbian guard Nenad Miljenovic. It’s unclear what sort of role Miljenovic will have in the organization – Eurohoops refers to it as a “front office’ position – but he has a clear connection to Denver’s franchise player, having spent two years as Nikola Jokic‘s teammate with Mega Basket in Serbia from 2013-15.
In their first game after the All-Star break, the Suns made many of the same mistakes that resulted in six losses in seven games ahead of the break, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Star forward Kevin Durant showed some frustration in the fourth quarter of Thursday’s loss to San Antonio – Phoenix’s fourth in a row — with the Suns’ defense struggling to get stops, barking at head coach Mike Budenholzer, “You need somebody who can guard,” according to Rankin.

Friendly Rivalry For Thompson, Sheppard At Rising Stars: Sengun Says Udoka Taught Rockets How To Win

February 15th, 2025 at 8:15pm CST by Arthur Hill

Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard were also in the Rising Stars tournament as the latest representatives of the Rockets, who’ve had at least one player involved every year since 2022, per Danielle Lerner of The Houston Chronicle. They were on opposite sides in one of Friday’s semifinals, as Thompson got the satisfaction of dunking on his teammate, but Sheppard’s squad came away with the victory. “The Rockets do a good job of getting young guys and making them better,” Sheppard said. “And Amen is an unbelievable talent, unbelievable guy. So being able to be out there with him today was a lot fun.”
Rockets center Alperen Sengun, a first-time All-Star, credits coach Ime Udoka for pushing him and the team in the right direction, Lerner adds in a separate story. Udoka sped up the rebuilding process in Houston by leading the Rockets to a .500 finish last season, and he currently has them fourth in the West. “We were just going over there and just playing,” Sengun said at his All-Star press conference. “Then Ime just came and changed everything for us, and he teach us to how to win.”

Southwest Notes: McCollum, Mavs, Konchar, Jackson, Rockets

February 15th, 2025 at 11:59am CST by Dana Gauruder

CJ McCollum has been a bright spot in an otherwise glum season for the Pelicans. McCollum notched his third 40-plus point night since the start of the New Year on Thursday, leading them to an overtime victory against Sacramento. McCollum’s 43-point night allowed New Orleans to snap a 10-game losing streak.

“CJ is incredible,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green told Rod Walker of NOLA.com. “He’s one of our guys that’s literally holding things together in the locker room with these young guys. He’s been through so much throughout the course of his career. He’s a staple for us. We see it week in and week out that he comes out and gives it everything he has every night.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

Overshadowed by the firestorm regarding the Luka Doncic trade is that the Mavericks, despite a wave of injuries, entered the All-Star break having won four of their last five games. That included a five-point victory over Miami in their last outing. “The bumps and bruises go away faster,” coach Jason Kidd said, per Grant Afseth of the Dallas Hoops Journal. “As I told the guys, get some rest, enjoy the break, be safe and when we come back, it’s time to push forward and find a way to get as high a seed as we can and win as many games as we can. Sometimes, you want the break. We do need the break, but we are starting to play pretty good basketball.”
During a Bleacher Report live stream (YouTube link), Jake Fischer identifies Grizzlies guard John Konchar as a potential buyout candidate. Konchar has posted modest stats in 29 appearances this season and isn’t part of the team’s regular rotation. However, he’s also in the first year of a three-year, $18.5MM contract, which is fully guaranteed, so it would seem like a long shot for the two parties to agree on a buyout.
Jaren Jackson Jr. is aiming for his second Defensive Player of the Year award, though it will be difficult to beat out Victor Wembanyama for that honor going forward. Jackson, who is making his second All-Star appearance, leads the Grizzlies in blocks and steals. “It’s a team award, really. So it would mean the world,” Jackson told Mark Medina of Athlon Sports. “It’s hard to win it two times. You can see that now. It’s not a given. So it would mean the world.”
The Rockets are clinging to fourth place in the Western Conference standings after losing seven of their last nine contests prior to the All-Star break. They dropped Thursday’s game to Golden State by a score of 105-98 and their head coach said the club needs some time off. The absences of Fred VanVleet (ankle) and Jabari Smith Jr. (hand) have played a major role in their slide. “We could be mentally and physically fried,” coach Ime Udoka told Kelly Iko of The Athletic. “But everybody’s in the situation right now going into the break. Maybe our guys are tired, but … a lack of competitiveness is not an excuse.”

Rockets’ Jabari Smith On Track To Return After All-Star Break

February 12th, 2025 at 12:29pm CST by Luke Adams

Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. is targeting a February 21 return from the hand injury that has sidelined him since early January, reports NBA Chris Haynes (Twitter video link).

Assuming Smith hits that target date, he would be back in action for Houston’s first game after the All-Star break, at home vs. the Timberwolves. However, agent Wallace Prather provided a more conservative timeline for his client’s return, telling Haynes, “We are targeting the end of the month.”

Smith has missed Houston’s past 20 games after fracturing his left hand during the team’s shootaround on January 3 ahead of a matchup with Boston. Prior to that injury, he had played a major part in the Rockets’ early-season success, starting the first 33 games of the season for a team that got off to a 22-11 start.

Smith has averaged 11.9 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.0 block in 30.9 minutes per game when healthy, with a shooting line of .435/.354/.867. Since he went down, the club has gone just 11-9, having just snapped a six-game losing streak on Sunday against Toronto.

Amen Thompson has taken over Smith’s spot in the starting lineup since Jan. 5 and has thrived in that new role, putting up 17.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 2.1 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game in his past 18 games as a starter.

It will be interesting to see which player is the odd man out of that starting five when Smith returns. The former No. 3 overall pick hasn’t come off the bench in any of his first 188 NBA outings.

NBA Teams With Open Roster Spots

February 10th, 2025 at 7:37am CST by Luke Adams

A number of free agent signings have been finalized in the days since last Thursday’s trade deadline, but there are still many teams around the NBA with one or more open spots on their respective rosters.

For clubs with just a single standard or two-way opening, there’s not necessarily any urgency to fill those spots, especially ahead of the All-Star break. But the clock is ticking for teams who have two or more openings on their standard rosters to make a move, since clubs are only permitted to carry fewer than 14 players on standard contracts for up to two weeks at a time.

With the help of our roster count tracker, here’s where things stand for all 30 teams around the NBA as of Monday morning. As a reminder, teams are typically permitted to carry up to 15 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals.

(Note: Teams marked with an asterisk have a player on a 10-day contract.)

Teams with multiple open roster spots

Cleveland Cavaliers
Golden State Warriors
Philadelphia 76ers *
Sacramento Kings *

The Cavaliers dipped to 13 players on standard contracts as a result of Thursday’s De’Andre Hunter trade, so their situation is fairly straightforward — they’ll have to re-add a 14th man by February 20.

The Warriors‘ four-for-one Jimmy Butler trade dropped them to just 11 players. They quickly got back to 12 by promoting Quinten Post from his two-way contract to a standard roster spot and now have three openings on their standard roster, along with one open two-way slot.

Golden State doesn’t have to fill all those openings, but the team does have to get back to at least 14 players on standard contracts by Feb. 20. Assuming Post got a prorated rookie minimum salary on his new deal, the Warriors – by my count – have $1,372,306 in breathing room below their first-apron hard cap.

If the Warriors were to sign a pair of veterans to rest-of-season minimum deals on Feb. 20, they would each count for $635,853 against the cap, leaving the team with $100,600 in breathing room below the hard cap. It’s possible Golden State will go that route. It’s also possible the club will sign a couple players to 10-day contracts, then go another 14 days in March with just 12 players under contract in order to create a bit of extra wiggle room below that hard cap. That would allow the Warriors to sign a 15th man a little earlier in the second half.

The Sixers briefly dropped to 12 players on standard contracts at the trade deadline, but they’re back to 14 now, having promoted Justin Edwards to a standard contract and given Chuma Okeke a 10-day deal. They’re expected to sign David Roddy to a 10-day contract too, which will give them a full standard roster.

For now then, no roster moves are necessary in Philadelphia, but the team does have a two-way slot open and could drop back to 13 players on standard deals after Okeke’s and Roddy’s 10-day contracts expire, which would necessitate a least one addition within 14 days.

The Kings are currently carrying 12 players on full-season standard contracts, with Daishen Nix on a 10-day deal. They’ll have to get back to 14 players by Feb. 20.

Teams with one open roster spot

Atlanta Hawks
Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets *
Dallas Mavericks
Indiana Pacers
Los Angeles Clippers
Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
New York Knicks
Toronto Raptors
Utah Jazz

The Hawks, Celtics, Nets, Mavericks, Bucks, Timberwolves, Pelicans, Knicks, Raptors, and Jazz are all carrying 14 players on full-season standard contracts and three on two-way deals, with no reported signings pending. They’re each free to carry that open roster spot for as long as they want to, though some figure to fill it sooner rather than later.

Two teams that can’t fill their openings sooner rather than later are Dallas and New York. The Knicks are just $540,126 below their second-apron hard cap, while the Mavericks have a mere $171,120 to operate below their first-apron hard cap. Based on my math, New York would be able to sign a veteran free agent as a 15th man as of February 28 (that date moved up a day as a result of the Knicks trimming $4,825 from their cap in the Delon Wright/Jericho Sims swap), while Dallas will have to wait until March 31.

The Hornets are in this group because they have a two-way slot open, but their standard roster is full for now. In fact, it’s more than full — as a result of having been granted a hardship exception, they’re temporarily carrying 16 players instead of the usual maximum of 15. Elfrid Payton, on a 10-day deal, is the 16th man.

The Pacers and Clippers, meanwhile, each technically have an open roster spot for now, but they reportedly have deals in place with prospective 15th men. Indiana will sign center Alex Len once he clears waivers, while L.A. will add three-time All-Star Ben Simmons. Both players are on track to clear waivers on Monday.

Teams with no open roster spots

Chicago Bulls
Denver Nuggets
Detroit Pistons
Houston Rockets
Los Angeles Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies
Miami Heat
Oklahoma City Thunder
Orlando Magic
Phoenix Suns
Portland Trail Blazers
San Antonio Spurs *
Washington Wizards *

The Bulls, Nuggets, Pistons, Rockets, Lakers, Grizzlies, Heat, Thunder, Magic, Suns, and Trail Blazers are all carrying 15 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals. If they want to make a free agent addition during the season’s final two months, they’ll have to cut a player to do so.

That won’t necessarily be the case for the Spurs and Wizards though. Both clubs have just 14 players on full-season standard contracts, with one on a 10-day deal — Bismack Biyombo for San Antonio and Jaylen Nowell for Washington. Once those contracts expire, the Spurs and Wizards could open up a roster spot if they opt not to retain Biyombo and Nowell, respectively.

Nets Buy Out Ben Simmons

February 8th, 2025 at 12:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Ben Simmons has reached an agreement on a contract buyout with the Nets, paving the way for him to become an unrestricted free agent, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The Nets have confirmed in a press release that they’ve officially requested waivers on Simmons. That means he’ll clear waivers and be free to sign with any NBA team as of Monday at 4:00 pm CT.

Charania first reported shortly after the trade deadline passed on Thursday that the Nets and Simmons were working toward a buyout, then co-reported on Friday along with ESPN colleague Brian Windhorst that the two sides were finalizing the terms of the agreement.

Various reports indicated that Simmons’ camp planned to meet with the Cavaliers, Clippers, and Rockets and that he wouldn’t complete a buyout with Brooklyn until he had his next destination lined up. However, agent Bernie Lee pushed back on that reporting on Friday in a statement to Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link).

“I just saw some of the other reporting,” Lee said. “(I) want to be really clear Ben hasn’t met with anyone nor is he. We are having conversations with the Nets and when there is something to be said we will let everyone know.”

The fact that Simmons has now been officially waived by the Nets and word still hasn’t leaked about a contract agreement with a new team backs up Lee’s comments. However, I suspect the former No. 1 overall pick wouldn’t have given up any portion of his salary to get out of his contract with Brooklyn unless he was confident about making back that money with another team, so it shouldn’t be long before we get another update.

[UPDATE: Clippers To Sign Ben Simmons]

Simmons, the 2018 Rookie of the Year, made three All-Star teams during his years in Philadelphia and finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2021, but had a falling out with the team later that year. A lengthy holdout, a series of back issues, and a trade to the Nets changed the trajectory of his career — across the past three years in Brooklyn, he has appeared in just 90 total games, averaging 6.5 points, 6.3 assists, and 6.2 rebounds in 25.4 minutes per night.

While Simmons’ extremely limited shooting ability make him a tricky piece to incorporate into certain lineups, he’s still a talented play-maker, defender, and rebounder who should have more significantly value as a low-cost addition on the buyout market than he did on his previous maximum-salary contract.

Because he was earning far beyond the $12.8MM mid-level exception on his contract with the Nets, Simmons will be ineligible to sign with any teams operating over either tax apron once he clears waivers. That means the Suns, Timberwolves, Celtics, Knicks, Lakers, Bucks, and Nuggets won’t be options.