DALLAS — As media members walked into the end of a recent Houston Rockets morning shootaround at American Airlines Arena, two players were locked in on a fierce but friendly 3-point competition. The shooting contest featured plenty of trash talk, as every shot that went up had words quickly following the ball towards the basket.
The popular drill was brought to the Rockets by former point guard DJ Augustin, who competed in it with his past teams. The rules state that a player must make three straight shots from one spot to advance.
Once we got closer to the court, most media members were not surprised that one of the voices talking the most was rookie Josh Christopher. He has frequently stated that the competition, along with the guidance of Augustin, helped him improve his 3-point shot during his rookie season.
Though he was a relative newcomer to the game (and to the team), rookie guard Daishen Nix was hitting shot after shot. As he watched each one go through the hoop, his confidence and tone of voice increased. Nix eventually went on to win the competition, which is exactly what he told Christopher would happen at every spot they shot from.
“I only let you win because I didn’t want to send you into your interview mad,” Christopher screamed out as Nix approached me.
“See what I have to go through,” Nix said with a smile. “He is going to keep saying that until we play again because that is the competitor he is, and it actually brings out the best in me to go against him.”
Welcome back…Found Christopher and Nix getting some pre-game work in. #Rockets #LightTheFuse #Sarge pic.twitter.com/6X1syfg1rJ
— #SARGE (@BigSargeSportz) November 29, 2021
Nix, 20, cherishes every moment he spends on the Rockets’ active roster. The undrafted rookie, who has split his time this season between Houston and G League affiliate Rio Grande Valley, knows that he has to take advantage of every opportunity to display his skill set.
“I learned that there are no days off,” Nix said when asked about his lessons over the 2021-22 season to date. “I am not playing that much, so I can’t take a day off. Every day is a working day for me, especially since I am a rookie. Coming in and working every single day and just getting extra reps, just in case my name is called.”
In February, the Rockets showed their commitment to the native of Anchorage, Alaska, by converting his two-way contract into a four-year, $6 million deal. A few weeks earlier, Nix had been named G League Player of the Week after averaging 27.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 6.3 assists, and the consistency of his performances were hard for head coach Stephen Silas and his staff with the Rockets to ignore.
“My main goal in the G League was to get my teammates involved because I know when I get called up by Coach Silas, I am supposed to be that point guard,” Nix said. “I know that I was not going to be taking 20 shots a game like I did with the Vipers. So, me going back down to the G League developing into a pass-first point guard helped me a lot coming back up.”
Nix will benefit from the remaining six games left in the season. The Rockets coaching staff plans to evaluate some of its younger talents by resting veterans Eric Gordon, Dennis Schröder, and Christian Wood, which has opened up a rotation spot for Nix as the backup point guard.
On Monday, playing in place of Schröder, Nix had 7 points and 3 rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench. Perhaps taking some lessons from his 3-point battles with Christopher, Nix went 2-for-2 on 3-pointers.
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