Starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. will miss at least one game for the Houston Rockets due to a sprained left ankle, per head coach Stephen Silas. Porter left early with the injury in Friday’s loss at Orlando.
In comments before Sunday’s home game versus the Los Angeles Clippers, Silas said the third-year guard is viewed as day-to-day moving forward, adding that his ankle still had some swelling earlier in the day. Houston next plays on Tuesday night, also at home versus the Clippers, and Porter’s status for that game is not yet clear.
Now 21 years old, Porter is averaging 13.5 points (37.9% on 3-pointers), 6.1 assists, and 4.0 rebounds in 29.9 minutes per game this season. In 21 games since returning from a left thigh contusion in late December, the 6-foot-4 guard has shot 43.8% from 3-point range.
Veteran guard Dennis Schroder again started in Porter’s place on Sunday, just as he did when Porter missed two games prior to the All-Star break due to an illness. Houston’s other four starters (Jalen Green, Eric Gordon, Jae’Sean Tate, and Christian Wood) remained unchanged.
Houston (15-44) entered Sunday with eight straight losses and the worst record in the Western Conference. As such, the individual growth of young players like Porter — particularly his improvement as a shooter — has been among the team’s bright spots in a rebuilding season.
[lawrence-related id=98730,98725]
[mm-video type=video id=01fwq0sdj2cqfczdbeqp playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fwq0sdj2cqfczdbeqp/01fwq0sdj2cqfczdbeqp-b617bc482258372fbe5624fe1719e47e.jpg]
[listicle id=98752]