The Rockets practiced on Thursday, Oct. 6 at Toyota Center as they gear up for Friday’s home preseason game versus Toronto. Houston (1-0) has yet to lose in 2022-23 exhibition play after a dominating performance in Sunday’s preseason opener against San Antonio.
Assistant coach John Lucas is leading the young team for the time being, since head coach Stephen Silas remains out due to a stint in the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Lucas said Thursday that the team is hopeful of having Silas return by Friday.
In worse news, top rookie Jabari Smith Jr. will miss Friday’s game due to a left ankle sprain, which he suffered late in practice the previous day. Lucas elaborated on Smith’s situation in his latest interview.
After Thursday’s practice at Toyota Center, the Rockets made Lucas, forward Jae’Sean Tate, and guard Garrison Mathews available to the media for interviews. Courtesy of the YouTube channel of Jackson Gatlin, host of “Locked on Rockets,” here’s a look at their complete interviews and how they responded to questions from reporters.
Friday’s tipoff between the Rockets and Raptors (2-0) is at 7:00 p.m. Central, and the game will be aired on AT&T SportsNet Southwest.