How did the Rockets handle VanVleet s injury?

. (Thompson averaged 35.8 minutes per game last season when he started next to VanVleet, matching the 36.1 minutes he averaged in the 18 starts without VanVleet.)

So unless the Rockets roll out a series of taller lineups, that may mean Shepard and Holiday, who were originally scheduled to compete for playing time behind VanVleet, will take on larger roles. Shepard only played 654 minutes in his rookie season, while Holiday played 792 minutes.

While the focus will naturally be on VanVleet's role as point guard and the floor spacing he provides, my prediction also suggests that the Rockets may miss his role more on the defensive end. After all, if Shepard improves in his second NBA season, he does make up for some of his shooting, and Thompson and Shen Jing will take on more offensive playmaking responsibilities.

VanVleet's reliable defense is an underrated factor on the Rockets' defensive end (seventh in defensive efficiency). According to Cleaning the Glass, the team gives up 1.9 points per 100 possessions more with VanVleet off the court than with him on the court, which is a bigger drop-off than the 1.3 points per 100 possessions fewer they experienced without him on offense.

Without VanVleet, I predict the Rockets will rank seventh in the league in offensive efficiency and 11th in defensive efficiency. They're still in contention for the top four in the West and have the fifth-best win projection in the West. And that's before the Rockets consider shuffling Shepard midway through the season if he doesn't develop the way they want.

But despite this, the Rockets still don't look like they can immediately threaten the Thunder as we thought before - when they made up for the lost lineup depth after the Durant trade by signing Finney Smith. Before VanVleet was injured, I wrote in my article that the backup point guard was the biggest shortcoming of the Rockets lineup. Today, this vulnerability is more prominent than ever. ——Kevin Pelton

Don't expect reinforcements to arrive in the backcourt

The Rockets still have one roster spot, and they may apply for a $12.5 million injury exception. If the NBA determines that VanVleet will be sidelined until mid-June, the league will grant the exception, which would normally allow them to sign or trade a player to a one-year contract.

However, even if this injury exception is approved, the Rockets will not be allowed to use this exception to sign a player (such as former Rockets guard Russell Westbrook) because the salary is only $1.25 million away from the hard cap of the first wealthy line. The Rockets' operations this offseason have resulted in them operating under a hard cap.

Based on this, the Rockets can fill VanVleet's vacancy through trade; they have five tradable first-round picks, including an unprotected first-round pick in 2027 (from the Phoenix Suns) and two higher first-round picks in 2029 (their own, the Suns and the Dallas Mavericks). They also own the rights to a first-round swap with the Brooklyn Nets in 2027.

However, what the Rockets lack is a tradable contract.

The eight players signed by the team this summer - VanVleet, Steven Adams, Finney Smith, Holiday, JaShaun Tate, Jeff Green, Josh Okogie and Capela - cannot be traded before mid-December.

At the same time, Smith Jr. signed a rookie contract extension, which is restricted by the poison clause. The last time a player with a poison clause was traded was nearly 17 years ago.

A total of 9 players on the team cannot be traded. The only remaining players who can be traded are starters Durant, Shen Jing and Thompson, as well as substitute players Shepard and Ethan. The total contract value of these two substitute players is US$16.3 million. ——Bobby Marks