After weeks of relentless injury issues that had the Rockets finish Saturday’s game with just six players, they could have as many coming back on Tuesday as were available in the loss in Denver.
Center Christian Wood sat out the second half of the back-to-back because of a sore right ankle, the result of wear and tear in the heavy schedule since he returned from a severe sprain last month. But Rockets coach Stephen Silas said he believed the off day and two days between games would be enough for him to return.
Guards John Wall (injury maintenance) and Kevin Porter Jr. (health and safety protocols) were scheduled to be back. Danuel House Jr. and Jae’Sean Tate, who left Saturday’s game in the second half when his back tightened, are also expected to return. If Avery Bradley can come back after missing two games with an illness, the Rockets would have six players available who were out by the end of a stretch of five games in seven days.
They still would be without Eric Gordon, D.J. Augustin, Sterling Brown, David Nwaba and Dante Exum, but for the Rockets, having five players out with injuries would represent being relatively healthy.
House had missed 10 games with a sprained right ankle before playing 21 minutes on Friday. Though House was not mentioned in the injury report on Saturday, Silas said House was “hobbling” during the game on Friday and chose to hold him out on Saturday.
“He was pretty much an emergency eighth guy,” Silas said. “I had told him that if I felt that we needed him to play he would play. But based on how he was limping around last night and kind of how the game was going, I felt I could make it with seven.
“Another day of rest, another day of recovery for him was good. I’m glad I didn’t have to play him.”
Tate was taken out after five second-half minutes. He tried to stretch enough to return to the game but Silas opted to hold him out.
“His back was kind of tightening up,” Silas said. “I think the five games in seven nights and all of the stuff he has been doing as of late, being the point guard, guarding centers and all of those things, has caught up to him just a little bit. I really want to make sure I’m looking after these guys. I didn’t feel it would be right to put him back in that game.”
The Rockets have used 35 starting lineups in 61 games, the most in the NBA. The record for the most lineups (since 1996-97) in a season is the 49 that the Warriors used in 2009-10. The Rockets would have to have 43 lineups this season to have the equivalent in a 72-game season.
With K.J. Martin and D.J. Wilson getting their first starts of the season on Saturday, 20 players have started for the Rockets this season.
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Rockets likely to get heavy reinforcements for Timberwolves game - Houston Chronicle
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