On Monday, the Houston Rockets were greeted with the unfortunate news of point guard Fred VanVleet's torn ACL that might end up keeping him out for the entirety of the 2025-26 campaign. The Rockets have grand contending ambitions especially after they brought in Kevin Durant via a blockbuster trade that cost them Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks, two major pieces of their 52-win team last season. This makes the loss of VanVleet to injury that much more devastating.
Last season, VanVleet's impact was ever so apparent. His stats may not jump off the page, and his shooting efficiency can be downright abhorrent at times, but his leadership, defense, and ability to set the table from the point of attack was crucial in getting the Rockets' offense to acceptable levels despite the team's lack of efficient scoring.
With VanVleet playing last year, the Rockets went 41-19; without him, they went 11-11 — a difference of over 18 percentage points in win rate.
Without him, the Rockets' depth will be tested. One would think that the Rockets would utilize Amen Thompson at the point to start the season, with Houston employing a supersized lineup with someone like Dorian Finney-Smith or Tari Eason starting in VanVleet's place. That would put so much pressure on Durant to create from the perimeter, however, and may be an untenable situation for the Rockets.
Maybe head coach Ime Udoka rolls with Reed Sheppard, the third overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft, as the Rockets' eventual starting point guard. Or maybe trusted backup Aaron Holiday gets the nod to start the year; he did shoot 39.8 percent from three last year and can be a pest defensively — functioning as a reasonable facsimile to VanVleet's playstyle.
Nonetheless, the Rockets may want to scour the trade market for some more insurance, even though their cap situation makes that close to impossible. Here are a few trade targets that Houston can set their sights to in the meantime.
Rockets trade for Scotty Pippen Jr.?
There are a few options available for the Rockets on the free-agent market, but being just $1.2 million under the first apron hard cap they find themselves in, it is impossible to sign someone to a rest of season contract until January.
But free agency options don't inspire much confidence anyway and don't look like good fits in the starting lineup. The player the Rockets need must be able to space the floor considering how they're already starting two non-shooters in Thompson and Alperen Sengun.
This rules out Russell Westbrook and Ben Simmons, two of the most prominent point guards left in free agency. It's not likely as well that the Rockets would deem someone like Cameron Payne, Alec Burks, or Markelle Fultz worth opening a spot for in October when the in-house options they have are better.
With that out of the way, the Rockets must, first and foremost, attempt to trade for Scotty Pippen Jr.
There are no indications that the Memphis Grizzlies would want to make Pippen available; they also freed up more room for him to be the undisputed backup point guard to Ja Morant after they let Cole Anthony walk without getting anything in return.
But at the moment, the Grizzlies still have so much depth, and trading away Desmond Bane for a player package headlined by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope means that Memphis is pivoting back to a more defensive-oriented mindset while tilting control of the offense back to Morant.
The Grizzlies signed Ty Jerome this offseason after a strong, Sixth Man of the Year consideration-worthy season with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and Jerome, despite standing at 6'5″, is at his best when he's able to control the basketball. Jerome and Pippen will be coming off the bench, and there might be a chance that one eats into the other's minutes.
Pippen is more defensive-oriented and is younger than Jerome. Moreover, Pippen is under a team-friendly deal until the 2027-28 season, when he'll be making a total of around $7.5 million — around $2 million less than Thompson would make this season with the Rockets. Hence, the Grizzlies are unlikely to part ways with him, especially to a division rival.
But it's merely due diligence for the Rockets to check in on Pippen's availability. Pippen, in 21 games as a starter last year, put up 14.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.7 assists, and 1.7 steals a game on 53/46/75 shooting splits — giving him the statistical profile of VanVleet without all the shooting inefficiency. Over a full season, he shot 48 percent from the field and 39 percent from three — percentages that are much better than VanVleet's.
Pippen is the ideal replacement for VanVleet, and considering his measly salary for the next three years, the Rockets can simply package a player making the veteran's minimum and then attaching whatever draft pick compensation is necessary to pry away the upstart point guard away from a division rival.
The Rockets own the Phoenix Suns' first-round pick in 2027 and can swap their own with that of the Brooklyn Nets' in 2027 as well, so they own a lot of appealing draft picks that could grease the wheels in a potential trade. Whether or not Houston views Pippen this highly is a different matter entirely.
But a torn ACL to a small point guard who's already 31 years of age could mean that he's never the same player again, and perhaps a long-term succession plan should be in order. And if the Rockets do not yet deem Sheppard ready, then Pippen could be the man for the job.
Can Houston convince Portland to give up Scoot Henderson?
These trade options aren't the most realistic for the Rockets to pursue. But considering how much draft compensation they have and how valuable those picks they own could be, then they might as well shoot for the moon.
One such improbable option is for them to trade for Portland Trail Blazers youngster Scoot Henderson.
Henderson may not start for the Blazers again this year, and at this point, it's not quite clear when he would be deemed ready to be. He did make some strides last year, averaging 12.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per ballgame despite mostly coming off the bench, but he will be relegated to secondary point guard duties yet again with the arrival of veteran Jrue Holiday. Next season, he'll drift into the background further once Damian Lillard returns.
With the Rockets, a large role will be available for Henderson. But will the Blazers part ways with Henderson for a package headlined by Sheppard when Sheppard struggled mightily in his rookie season?
Henderson also has two years left on his rookie deal, while Sheppard has three, so maybe the Rockets would be the ones to say no to this considering how highly they value Sheppard and his potential as a devastating shot-creator from beyond the arc.
Nonetheless, this is just an interesting idea to pursue should the Rockets and Blazers want to explore a change of scenery for both of their talented yet flawed young point guards.
Will Pacers make TJ McConnell available?
The Rockets could make a Steven Adams and some draft picks package to entice the Indiana Pacers to give up TJ McConnell. McConnell showed in the NBA Finals that he can be so impactful when it matters the most, and he's able to do so despite not having a quality three-point shot.
But both teams will not want to pursue this trade, even if the Pacers may need some center depth after losing Myles Turner in free agency.
For one, the Rockets' spacing will be so cramped with McConnell on the court. McConnell, Thompson, and Sengun together would make life a headache even for someone as gifted offensively as Kevin Durant.
Meanwhile, the Pacers will be without Tyrese Haliburton for the entirety of the 2025-26 season, so they also need guard play. And they need to lean into the goodwill they earned from their fanbase after their Cinderella 2025 NBA Finals run, and featuring a playoff hero like McConnell heavily should help keep the fans pleased in this gap season.
