Christian Wood Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southwest Notes: Oladipo, Wood, Mavs, K. Anderson

February 19th, 2021 at 7:43pm CST by Luke Adams

After having their Friday and Saturday games postponed due to the government shutdown of the Toyota Center and the ongoing weather-related issues in Texas, the Rockets aren’t a sure thing to host the Bulls in Houston on Monday. But if that game is played as scheduled, the team is hoping Victor Oladipo can be available for it, sources tell Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Oladipo hasn’t played since February 11 due to a right foot strain, with the team’s losing streak extending to seven games during that time. However, if the Rockets play on Monday and the two-time All-Star is able to return, he’ll have only missed three games while resting the injury for 10 days.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Rockets big man Christian Wood (ankle sprain) isn’t as close to returning as Oladipo is, but he posted a message on Instagram on Thursday indicating that he’s aiming to get back on the court before the All-Star break, as Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston relays (via Twitter).
Appearing on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle said he doesn’t view a big man who can rebound as a pressing trade deadline need, but added that he’ll leave that decision up to the front office (Twitter link via Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News). “You know Mark (Cuban) and Donnie (Nelson),” Carlisle said. “These guys are gunslingers. They’re riverboat gamblers, and they’re ready to talk about anything that would get the team better.”
When the Grizzlies acquired Justise Winslow a year ago, he seemed destined to supplant Kyle Anderson as the team’s small forward of the future. However, Winslow has yet to make his debut in Memphis and remains a major question mark, opening the door for Anderson to reclaim that role, as Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian writes.

Southwest Notes: Cuban, Pelicans, Rockets, Wood

February 7th, 2021 at 8:45pm CST by JD Shaw

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban spoke to his team prior to the club’s game against the Warriors on Saturday night, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News writes.

Cuban addressed the locker room at the request of head coach Rick Carlisle, whose Mavs are now 3-7 in its last 10 games.

“He was just very encouraging about the entire situation,” Carlisle said. “He reiterated that we’ve had the toughest schedule in the league to this point, that we have an opportunity here and none of these games are going to be easy.

“He just wanted everybody to know that he was fully supportive of everything and everybody. Good stuff from the heart.”

The Mavericks defeated the Warriors 134-132 in the contest, led by Luka Doncic‘s 42 points, seven rebounds, and 11 assists. The team, which has been impacted by injuries, holds the second-worst record in the Western Conference at 10-14.

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

The Pelicans have emphasized the meaning of “trust” in recent games, Christian Clark of Nola.com writes. New Orleans is on a three-game winning streak, and Stan Van Gundy, Zion Williamson, and others pointed to that as one reason why. “It’s just coming together and telling each other we trust each other to make the right play,” Williamson said. “Ultimately, I think it’s just trust with us.”
The Rockets are continuing to struggle with slow starts, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle writes. Houston dropped a 116-106 contest to the Spurs on Saturday with another relatively slow start, causing the team to fight an uphill battle the rest of the game. The club is still 7-3 in its last 10 outings.
Houston will have to adjust without the likes of Christian Wood, who suffered a right ankle sprain last week and will be re-evaluated on a weekly basis, Feigen notes in a different story. The Rockets started DeMarcus Cousins on Saturday, who finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds. “You just go to know your personnel,” John Wall said. “It’s two different guys. It’s the game of basketball, knowing your guys and knowing where your guys like the ball and what type of position they like to be in. That’s my job, to make the game easier for him and put them in the right positions to be successful.”

Rockets Notes: Cousins, Wood, Wall, Nwaba

February 6th, 2021 at 5:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

DeMarcus Cousins showed flashes of his All-Star days when Christian Wood missed three games with a sprained right ankle in January. He’ll get a much longer chance to prove he can still be effective as a starter now that Wood is sidelined with a more severe injury, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle.

Wood has been listed as week to week after spraining the ankle again Thursday in Memphis. Until he returns, the under-sized Rockets will rely heavily on Cousins, who is the only other true center on the roster. Pressed into starting duty last month, the four-time All-Star averaged 17.3 points, 14.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game.

“Obviously, that helped me with my confidence going through this season,” he said. “I mean, it’s unfortunate what happened to C-Wood. I’m going to come in and do my job. That’s really all I can do, play my part and help us get another W in the win column.”

There’s more from Houston:

The Rockets aren’t offering a firm estimate of how much time Wood might miss, so Kelly Iko of The Athletic talked to Dr. Rajpal Brar, a physical therapist and sports scientist at 3cB Performance. “Really hard to tell severity just based on video,” Brar said. “However, if the Rockets are saying it’s a weekly eval, it’s my inclination that it’s a Grade 2 tear without any fracture (the fact he walked off was a very good indicator of the latter). Grade 2 is typically 2-3 weeks. Grade 3 is 4-6.”
John Wall has claimed leadership of the Rockets since James Harden was traded to Brooklyn last month, tweets Mark Berman of Fox 26 in Houston. “I feel like I’m the franchise guy now that James has left,” Wall said. “You very rarely get the opportunity to be a franchise (guy) in two different cities and two different teams. … I feel like that’s my job, to be the leader of this team.”
David Nwaba is listed as questionable for tonight against the Spurs, and the Rockets are optimistic that he’s close to returning after missing the past three games with a sprained left ankle, Feigen adds in a separate story. “He has been doing his treatment, has been working on it,” coach Stephen Silas said. “… He’s definitely moving in the right direction.”

Christian Wood To Be Re-Evaluated On Weekly Basis

February 5th, 2021 at 9:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rockets center Christian Wood will be re-evaluated on a weekly basis for his right ankle sprain, the team announced on Friday in a press release.

He underwent an MRI on Friday after suffering the injury during the third quarter of Thursday’s game at Memphis. While the release didn’t indicate the severity of the sprain, it’s likely that Wood is facing a prolonged absence, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets.

It’s a major blow to one of the league’s hottest teams. The Rockets have won seven of their last eight games to get past the .500 mark at 11-10. Houston has a busy February schedule with 13 games remaining this month and it’s quite possible Wood will miss most or all of those games.

He sat out three games late last moth with a similar injury but otherwise, Wood has built upon his breakout season with Detroit.

Acquired by Houston in a sign-and-trade, Wood has emerged as an All-Star candidate, averaging 22.0 PPG, 10.2 RPG and 1.5 BPG through 17 games.

Without him, the team will rely more heavily on DeMarcus Cousins, Rodions Kurucs and trade candidates P.J. Tucker and Danuel House.

Rockets Fear Extended Absence For Christian Wood

February 5th, 2021 at 8:38am CST by Arthur Hill

An MRI will be conducted today on Rockets center Christian Wood, who injured his right ankle in Thursday night’s win over the Grizzlies, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.

Wood had to be helped off the court after rolling the ankle on a drive to the basket during the third quarter. He split two defenders, but landed awkwardly and fell to the ground in pain. It’s the second time in less than three weeks that he has hurt the ankle. He missed three games after a similar injury on January 20, but sources tell MacMahon the Rockets are concerned it will be much longer this time.

“I don’t know,” coach Stephen Silas said after the game when asked how long Wood might be sidelined. “It didn’t look great. It was unfortunate.”

Acquired by Houston in a sign-and-trade during the offseason, Wood has emerged as an All-Star candidate, averaging 22.0 points and 10.2 rebounds through 17 games.

DeMarcus Cousins will become the Rockets’ starting center while Wood is sidelined. He was outstanding in that role in the three games Wood missed in January, averaging 17.3 points, 14.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists per night. Cousins is playing on a non-guaranteed contract that won’t become fully guaranteed until the league-wide date later this month.

Houston doesn’t have much size apart from Cousins, so the team could be looking at a roster move if Wood is forced to miss several weeks.

“It was difficult for me,” Silas said of watching the injury. “I had to like sit down and collect my thoughts and gather myself. As good as he’s been playing, I mean, really just like a breakout season and doing everything we needed him to do … Yeah, it sucks.”

Rockets Notes: Oladipo, Wood, Porter Jr., Thomas, Martin

January 29th, 2021 at 7:56pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rockets guard Victor Oladipo feels like franchises he’s played for have been too quick to give up on him, as he told Chris Sims of the Indianapolis Star. Oladipo was acquired from the Pacers in the four-team blockbuster trade that sent James Harden to Brooklyn. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after the season. “It’s unfortunate going through my career, it just feels like people kind of keep quitting on me, but it’s a part of life and I embrace it,” Oladipo said. “I’m just trying to make the most of every day.” He’s averaging 22.4 PPG, 4.8 RPG and 4.8 APG in his first five games with Houston.

We have more on the Rockets:

Big man Christian Wood is one of the 60 players invited by USA Basketball to compete for one of the 12 spots on the Olympic team, Mark Berman of KRIV tweets. He’ll fight an uphill battle to make Team USA but it’s another accomplishment for a player who bounced around the league before his breakout season in Detroit a year ago.
Houston is assigning Kevin Porter Jr. Brodric Thomas, and KJ Martin to the G League’s Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Porter is the most notable name among the trio headed to Orlando for G League “bubble” practices and games in Orlando. The second-year swingman was acquired from the Cavs after wearing out his welcome in Cleveland.
Should Wood be considered for the All-Star team? Voice your opinion in our latest Community Shootaround.

Rockets Notes: Wood, Cousins, Porter, Oladipo

January 27th, 2021 at 8:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

Rockets center Christian Wood has declared himself “100 percent” after missing three straight games with an ankle injury, which creates a playing time dilemma for coach Stephen Silas, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. DeMarcus Cousins took over the starting role and averaged 17.3 points, 14.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists in Wood’s absence.

Wood, who ranks third in the league in scoring among centers at 23.5 points per game, will move back into the starting spot Thursday night. Cousins has been far less effective off the bench, but Silas hopes his performance this week will boost his confidence.

“I think the fact that (Cousins) had some success over these last three games will help him moving forward, making sure that he has enough time on the floor to play well and making sure that we’re doing things so he can play to his strengths,” Silas said. “It’s a harder role coming off the bench. When you’re a starter and you’re given more leeway and your minutes are up and you’re not playing behind Christian Wood — who is really playing well — it’s a lot easier for Cuz as a starter.”

There’s more from Houston:

Second-year forward Kevin Porter Jr., who was acquired from the Cavaliers last week, joined the Rockets for practice for the first time today, Feigen notes in a separate story. Because Cleveland wasn’t included in the summer restart and Porter had been away from the team for personal reasons, today marked the first time he has practiced with a team since last March. Silas said Porter has been “great” and “attentive” in his short time in Houston. “We’re just integrating him slowly,” he said. “We’re coming up with a plan that makes sense for him and for the team. He hasn’t played in a while. He’s kind of just learning. He’s a young kid, but he’s very talented. When he first got here, we had to make sure that we’re really, really smart about the structure we have put in place for him on and off the floor.”
Victor Oladipo tells Eric Woodyard of ESPN that he held a funeral service for his injured knee before the start of the season. The ceremony, which took place while he was still with the Pacers, was intended to push aside the mindset of being injured that he had been carrying since having surgery for a ruptured quad tendon in 2019. “I was feeling better, but my mind was so used to protecting me — and being hesitant because of my leg — that I had created a habit of doing that,” Oladipo said.
In case you missed it, John Wall talked about the importance of getting a win against his former team Tuesday night and the feeling that the Wizards gave up on him.

Injury/Illness Updates: Herro, Pritchard, Wall, Wood, Porter Jr.

January 22nd, 2021 at 9:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Heat guard Tyler Herro returned to Miami on Friday for the remainder of the team’s four-game trip, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes. Herro seemed ready to return to action after practicing on Thursday but woke up Friday with more neck soreness. He has missed four consecutive games and will also be absent from Miami’s two-game set in Brooklyn against the Nets on Saturday and Monday.

We have more injury updates:

Celtics rookie guard Payton Pritchard suffered a right knee sprain against the Sixers on Friday and did not return, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Pritchard was injured during a “friendly fire” incident when Jaylen Brown fell on his leg. Coach Brad Stevens said afterward that Pritchard would undergo testing in the next day or two.
The Rockets are hopeful that John Wall and Christian Wood will be back in uniform on Tuesday for the team’s home game against Washington, Ben DuBose of Rockets Wire relays. Wall missed his fifth straight game on Friday due to knee soreness, while Wood didn’t make the trip to Detroit due to an ankle sprain.
Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. returned to action on Friday after a 10-game absence, according to ESPN’s news feed. Porter had been sidelined due to the league’s healthy and safety protocols.

Eastern Notes: Pistons, Wood, Durant, Zeller

January 22nd, 2021 at 1:02pm CST by Luke Adams

At last season’s trade deadline, after agreeing to send Clint Capela to Atlanta, the Rockets pursued a deal for Christian Wood, offering the Pistons a pair of second-round picks and Isaiah Hartenstein in exchange for the big man, according to James L. Edwards III and Kelly Iko of The Athletic. Detroit rebuffed that offer and showed interest in re-signing Wood during the 2020 offseason.

The Pistons’ interest was reciprocated by Wood, and the team made him a contract offer, per Edwards and Iko. However, Detroit was pursuing free agents like Jerami Grant and Mason Plumlee and wasn’t in position to use cap room on Wood as well.

Without dipping into their cap space, the Pistons had the ability to use Wood’s Early Bird rights to offer him a contract that started at $10.05MM, and – according to The Athletic’s duo – they didn’t go over that amount. That meant they were outbid when the Rockets presented Wood with a three-year offer that started at $13MM+.

Here’s more on Wood, along with a couple more Eastern Conference notes:

With Wood’s Rockets set to face Detroit on Friday, Pistons head coach Dwane Casey said he’s proud to see the big man enjoying success in Houston, as Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press writes. “We tried to get him here, we just didn’t have enough in the bucket,” Casey said. “He’s a special kid and I think good things for him and wish him well, except for (Friday) night.” Wood has been ruled out for the game due to a sprained right ankle.
Nets star Kevin Durant, who played 50 minutes in Wednesday’s double-overtime loss to Cleveland, will be held out of Friday’s rematch due to injury management, per the team (Twitter link). Friday’s game is the first half of a back-to-back set, so Durant should be available on Saturday vs. Miami.
After having missed most of the season with a hand fracture he suffered on opening night, Hornets center Cody Zeller is listed as probable for Friday’s game vs. Chicago and is expected to be available. Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer examines what sort of impact Zeller can have on a Hornets team in need of frontcourt depth.

Rockets’ Players, Silas Discuss Harden Situation

January 13th, 2021 at 2:26pm CST by Luke Adams

On Tuesday night, James Harden said that he didn’t feel as if the Rockets were “good enough” to compete with the NBA’s best teams, suggesting that there wasn’t enough talent on the roster and that he didn’t think the situation could be fixed.

Those comments may essentially represent his farewell to Houston, as they appear to have accelerated the Rockets’ efforts to trade him. They also didn’t sit well with some of the teammates he was throwing under the bus.

Addressing the situation today, DeMarcus Cousins pointedly stated that he came to Houston to play with John Wall, and expressed his displeasure with Harden’s public critique of the Rockets and the way he has handled himself over the last month or two.

“He can feel however he wants to about the organization or whatever his current situation is, but the other 14 guys in the locker room have done nothing to him,” Cousins said, per James Herbert of CBS Sports (Twitter link). “So for us to be on the receiving end of some of the disrespectful comments and antics, it’s completely unfair to us.”

While Cousins was referring in part to Harden’s press conference on Tuesday, he made it clear that it’s not as if everyone was on the same page up until then.

“The disrespect started way before any interview,” Cousins said (Twitter link via Herbert). “Just the approach to training camp, showing up the way he did, the antics off the court. I mean the disrespect started way before.”

While other Rockets players who have addressed the Harden situation since Tuesday night weren’t quite as blunt as Cousins, Christian Wood acknowledged that the situation has “been going on since training camp” and said Harden’s comments hurt team chemistry (Twitter links via Herbert).

Wall, who spoke to reporters shortly after Harden did on Tuesday, expressed his frustration with his backcourt mate’s unwillingness to buy in.

“When the one through 15 guys are all on the same page… you all will be fine,” Wall said (video link via Bleacher Report). “But when you have certain guys in the mix that don’t want to buy in all as one, it’s going to be hard do anything special or do anything good as a basketball team.

“… It’s only been nine games. Like, come on, man, you’re gonna jump off the cliff off of nine games? There’s a lot of basketball still to be played.”

Head coach Stephen Silas was diplomatic about the situation, telling the media today that Harden “was nothing but professional” to him personally and calling the saga a “crazy NBA situation” (Twitter links via Herbert). With Harden away from the team, Silas said he’s focused on the other players on Houston’s roster.

“The reaction (to Tuesday’s comments) was less about what James said and more about the group, and how the group would feel about what he said,” Silas said, noting that he believes the Rockets are better than their 3-6 record suggests. “That was my main concern because that’s hard to hear. Especially when you don’t believe it and you know it not to be true.”

While it seemed for a time that the Rockets might drag out their Harden trade talks until the March deadline, it now appears likely that a deal will be completed this week.