Houston Rockets starting point guard Fred VanVleet recently suffered a devastating torn ACL which will likely keep him out for the entirety of next season. With this injury and their current depth chart, the Rockets are now thrust into a similar position as the Phoenix Suns without any proven point guards.
This will make the Rockets a direct contender against the Suns for free agents and trade targets at that key position.
The Rockets and Suns will be competing for the same players.
The Rockets are now expected to start third-year player Amen Thompson at point guard and shift their already gargantuan lineup even bigger. Thompson is not the most natural point guard, especially when it comes to creating his own shot on the perimeter, but displayed solid passing chops last season in specific situations.
This places the Rockets into a similar predicament as the Suns, who will start Jalen Green at point guard. Green has never properly played point guard in the NBA, but has displayed flashes of playmaking on drives to the rim. Both teams will be relying on playmaking growth from these young players to keep their seasons afloat.
This situational similarity will also pit the two teams against each other in vying for a veteran point guard’s services. If the Suns want to pick up a free agent like Russell Westbrook to run point or back up Green, they will now have to contend with Rockets offers too.
Given that the Rockets were expected to contend for a championship prior to this injury, veterans may be more inclined to sign there than in Houston.
However, the Suns do have an advantage in the variety of point guards who would fit their team. Between Devin Booker, Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks, the Suns actually have plenty of options who can space the floor or attract defensive attention off the ball. The same cannot be said for the Rockets, who rely on defensive wings around Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun.
Between this injury to Van Vleet and the haul given up for Durant, the Rockets have lost the majority of their 3-point shooters from last season. Any new point guard who comes in to fill the void will need to make up some of that gap, which limits the Rockets from pursuing drive-first options like Westbrook.
The VanVleet injury and its shockwaves on the Rockets season are reminders of how important quality depth is, especially at important positions. The Suns saw this first-hand last season whenever their stars missed time. Even now, they still lack depth at the all-important point guard position and now it may be even harder to acquire a quality option to bolster the roster.