Rockets add former University of Houston star DeJon Jarreau on hardship deal

With COVID-19 issues taking their toll on the roster, the Rockets signed former University of Houston star DeJon Jarreau on Tuesday to a temporary hardship contract.

With COVID-19 issues taking their toll on Houston’s roster, as evidenced by four unavailable rotation players, the Rockets signed local college hero DeJon Jarreau to a temporary hardship deal. He will be in uniform and active for the home game on Tuesday night versus the Lakers.

A 6-foot-5 guard who is well regarded for his defense and toughness, Jarreau has averaged 9.7 points (38.1% on 3-pointers), 4.5 assists, and 3.9 rebounds in 20.9 minutes per game with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Indiana’s NBA G League affiliate. The 23-year-old rookie went undrafted in 2021 shortly after helping lead his college team, the University of Houston, to their first NCAA Final Four appearance in 37 years.

Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston was first with the report of “Deeky” Jarreau reaching a contract agreement with the Rockets.

Under new rules, NBA teams can sign one replacement for each player who tests positive for COVID-19 (starting with the second player), and teams are required to have at least 13 active players who are not injured.

The Rockets recently filled two of their vacated roster spots by recalling rookie guard Daishen Nix and forward Usman Garuba from the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston’s G League affiliate. Both are on two-way contracts and can fill the roster spots of two of the protocols players.

A player such as John Wall, who is sitting out as part of a mutual agreement, does not count toward the NBA’s desired total of 13 active players. So, excluding Wall and including two-way players, the Rockets start with a roster of 16 players — but the four protocol absences reduce that to 12. Thus, one signing was needed to get back to 13. Similarly, any other positive test results in the coming days will require a replacement.

Houston may be hit disproportionately hard by the league’s current wave of enhanced post-Christmas testing, since it was not frequently tested throughout much of the season due to their status as a fully vaccinated (and now fully boostered) team. As a result, while other teams are having certain players not tested due to them already having documented COVID-19 cases this season and being exempt, the Rockets have their entire roster subject to the enhanced testing.

Any replacement players (such as Jarreau) who are signed will not count toward the team’s yearly salary and will not factor into any luxury tax calculations. Each hardship signing is initially for a period of 10 days.

[lawrence-related id=59498,59410]

[listicle id=59436]