Tag: Daishen Nix

NBA option deadline moves: Rockets keep KJ Martin, waive Daishen Nix

The #Rockets picked up KJ Martin’s $1.9-million option for the 2023-24 season, which maximizes salary cap room this offseason while keeping him trade eligible. Daishen Nix was waived.

With the NBA’s 2023 free agency period opening Friday, June 30, at 5 p.m. Central, that makes Thursday the last day for teams and players around the league to make decisions on player contracts that either have options for next season or a potential qualifying offer.

For Houston, the biggest decision involved fourth-year forward KJ Martin, who had a team option for 2023-24 at only $1.9 million. Picking up that option and keeping him on his existing deal carries the risk of allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent in 2024, but it maximizes Houston’s 2023 cap space due to that lower figure. Picking up the option also keeps him trade eligible this summer.

An athletic 22-year-old forward, Martin averaged 12.7 points (56.9% FG) and 5.5 rebounds in 28 minutes per game last season.

Had the Rockets declined that option, it would have made Martin a restricted free agent this summer while putting a larger “cap hold” on Houston’s offseason books, relative to his actual salary. That would slightly decrease Houston’s spending potential in 2023 free agency.

The upside to that scenario is that it might have boosted the odds of keeping Martin long-term, since — similar to Jae’Sean Tate one year ago — general manager Rafael Stone would be in a better long-term negotiating position if he could leverage paying Martin a year early and perhaps use that restricted status to scare away other suitors.

It’s also possible a longer-term deal might make Martin even more of a trade commodity though it would remove him from the trade market for six months due to signing a new contract.

Ultimately, the Rockets decided to pick up Martin’s option year, which keeps him on the books at a lower figure and maintains his eligibility to be traded this offseason. Read on for a look at all the details, along with other related option-deadline decisions made with players such as Daishen Nix, Darius Days, and Trevor Hudgins.

Jalen Green impresses in return, but Jamal Murray leads Nuggets past Rockets

#Rockets guard Jalen Green returned from a groin injury and played well in limited minutes, but Denver’s Jamal Murray was too much to handle in Houston’s 10th straight loss.

HOUSTON — The losing streak for the Rockets (13-48) is at 10 games after Tuesday’s 133-112 loss (box score) at Toyota Center. Led by 32 points from Jamal Murray, the victorious Denver Nuggets continue to own the Western Conference’s best record (44-19).

Murray, who was questionable to play pregame with a sore back, connected on 12-of-18 shots (66.7%) and 5-of-10 from 3-point range (50.0%). Following an historic 71-point outburst by Portland’s Damian Lillard on Sunday, it was the second straight game that Houston was torched by an opposing guard who shredded its defense.

Yet, when accounting for the superior competition, there were at least some positives for the young and rebuilding Rockets. For starters, they had Jalen Green successfully return from a groin injury, and Houston also expects to get injured backcourt mate Kevin Porter Jr. back in its lineup Wednesday versus Memphis.

While on a minutes limitation, Green was impressive with 17 points and 5 assists versus the Nuggets in 19 minutes, shooting 7-of-15 from the field (46.7%) and 3-of-7 on 3-pointers (42.9%).

Other key statistics for the Rockets included:

  • Tari Eason: 17 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists; 7-of-10 shooting (70.0%)
  • Daishen Nix: 14 points, 5 assists; 6-of-10 shooting (60.0%), 2-of-4 on 3-pointers (50.0%)
  • KJ Martin: 15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals; 7-of-13 shooting (53.8%)
  • TyTy Washington: 12 points, 5 assists; 5-of-10 shooting (50.0%), 2-of-5 on 3-pointers (40.0%)
  • Josh Christopher: 11 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists; 5-of-11 shooting (45.5%), 1-of-3 on 3-pointers (33.3%)

Scroll on for highlights, analysis, and postgame interviews. Next up for the Rockets is part two of a tough back-to-back when Memphis visits Houston on Wednesday night. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. Central.

Takeaways: Damian Lillard scores career-high 71 as Blazers best Rockets

All-Star guard Damian Lillard scored a career-high 71 points against the Rockets, including 41 in an epic first half, as Portland cruised to victory on Sunday night.

All-Star guard Damian Lillard scored a career-high 71 points on Sunday, including 41 in an astonishing first-half outburst, leading the host Trail Blazers to a 131-114 win (box score) over the young and rebuilding Rockets. Houston (13-47) continues to hold the NBA’s worst record and has now lost nine straight games.

In his historic game, Lillard connected on 22-of-38 shots (57.9%), 13-of-22 from 3-point range (59.1%), and went 14-of-14 on free throws. His total of 62 points was the most by any player in Trail Blazers history and the most by any player against the Rockets in team history.

The Rockets were again without usual starting guards Kevin Porter Jr. (left foot contusion) and Jalen Green (left groin strain).

Among Houston players who did play, key performances were:

  • Alperen Sengun: 17 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists; 8-of 16 shooting (50.0%)
  • Daishen Nix: 16 points (career high), 2 assists; 7-of-19 shooting (36.8%), 2-of-7 on 3-pointers (28.7%)
  • Tari Eason: 15 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 assists; 6-of-12 shooting (50.0%), 1-of-1 on 3-pointers
  • KJ Martin: 14 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists; 5-of-10 shooting (50.0%)
  • Jae’Sean Tate: 16 points, 2 assists, 2 rebounds; 7-of-11 shooting (63.6%)
  • Boban Marjanovic: 10 points, 3 rebounds in 6 minutes; 4-of-5 shooting (80.0%)

Scroll on for highlights, analysis, and postgame interview reaction. Next up for Houston, starting Tuesday, is a tough back-to-back at home versus Denver and Memphis — currently the top-two seeds in the Western Conference. Both tipoffs are at 7 p.m. Central.

Player grades: 2022-23 Houston Rockets at the All-Star break

At a team level, the 2022-23 #Rockets season is one to forget. However, there are some individual bright spots, starting with Alperen Sengun, Tari Eason, and KJ Martin.

At the NBA’s All-Star break for its 2022-23 season, the numbers aren’t pretty for the young and rebuilding Houston Rockets.

Their 13-45 record is the worst in the NBA, as is Houston’s offensive rating (110.0). Their defensive rating (118.4) ranks 28th among the league’s 30 teams, and their net rating (-8.4) is No. 29.

Head coach Stephen Silas is in the final fully guaranteed season of his current contract, and questions have been raised whether he will be offered a second deal. Many fans have raised questions regarding general manager Rafael Stone as well.

Yet, it’s not as if the franchise is hopeless. For starters, they will have another high pick in what should be a strong 2023 NBA draft class, and they’re positioned to have the most salary cap space this offseason (up to $60 million, approximately) of any NBA team. That could help them attract marquee veterans, such as James Harden.

In addition, while the sum of the parts clearly hasn’t amounted to much this season — particularly given a void of veterans — there are some individual bright spots among the young prospects.

Among players averaging at least 10 minutes per game, here’s our individual grades. These grades are relative to expectations entering the season, i.e. a high grade for a bench player doesn’t necessarily mean that he’s outplayed a high-profile starter with a worse grade. It’s all relative to where each player began the 2022-23 campaign.

This list is sorted by total minutes, from most to least.

Player salaries, payroll for Houston Rockets after 2023 trade deadline

Including moves at February’s trade deadline, here’s a look at Houston’s active salaries and dead money entering a critical 2023 offseason. #Rockets

For the young and rebuilding Houston Rockets, their roster to finish the 2022-23 season is all about flexibility.

Much of the roster is comprised of highly touted draft prospects from recent years such as Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun. Because these players are on their initial NBA contracts, their annual salaries are relatively inexpensive by league standards.

Houston does have some veterans, but maintaining its salary cap space of roughly $60 million for a critical 2023 offseason was a priority in selecting who those veterans are.

For example, of the three veterans acquired and initially retained at the 2023 trade deadline — Danny Green, Justin Holiday and Frank Kaminsky — none has any guaranteed money owed beyond this season. Thus, for general manager Rafael Stone, their acquisition preserved the balance sheet as it’s been carefully set up over the years.

Here is Houston’s roster as the league year winds down. This list is sorted in ascending order from least to most, financially, during the 2022-23 season, according to HoopsHype salary data. Any potential earnings for each Rockets player as part of his current contract are noted beneath each photo.

2022-2023 Houston Rockets roster after the trade deadline

Here’s where the #Rockets stand with their roster, coaching staff, and basketball operations department as the 2022-23 season winds down and a critical 2023 offseason approaches.

After the February 2023 trade deadline, the Houston Rockets remain one of the NBA’s youngest teams. Yet, they have something of a veteran presence after adding Danny Green, Justin Holiday and Frank Kaminsky as part of their complicated web of transactions.

While none has a contract beyond the 2022-23 season, the Rockets will acquire Bird rights for each. Thus, general manager Rafael Stone will have options moving forward.

By and large, the rebuilding Rockets have prioritized youth and salary flexibility in building their current group.

That’s why it’s a combination of highly touted prospects Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun and Jabari Smith Jr. along with veterans Danny Green, Holiday and Kaminsky expiring salaries. Sengun and Smith are on their initial NBA contracts, which inherently makes them cheaper for the time being.

That formula is likely to change this offseason, when Stone and the Rockets have approximately $60 million in salary cap space to build a roster around those talented young prospects. They will need to explore contract extensions and raises for many of their young players in the coming years. For now, they’re making the best of another challenging season by staying flexible with the roster.

Here’s a look at where the Houston roster and basketball operations staff currently stands, along with jersey numbers and other relevant information for each player. All ages are as of Feb. 14, 2023.

Rockets’ effort, energy from Detroit win carries over into Monday’s practice

“We competed today, so whenever we have competitive practices, it gets to be ugly,” said John Lucas II, acting head coach for the #Rockets in the absence of Stephen Silas.

HOUSTON — As the Rockets were wrapping up practice on Monday at Toyota Center, you could hear the competitive back-and-forth of players going at each other. Although the precise words were inaudible from where the media was waiting for practice to conclude, you could feel the energy radiate to the area.

Once reporters were allowed in, it seemed as if the players had just finished playing someone other than their teammates. It was a passionate, competitive carryover from the way the Rockets finished Saturday’s fourth quarter in their 117-114 victory at Detroit.

“We competed today, so whenever we have competitive practices, it gets to be ugly,” said acting head coach John Lucas II. “But it is all love. That is the only way we can get better because we don’t have veteran players to help teach us. So, how do you win? Effort and energy. If we learn to play at that effort and energy all of the time, it helps us. We go to play hard. Playing hard makes up for lack of knowledge.”

The Rockets were without their three leading scorers, Kevin Porter Jr., Jalen Green, and Alperen Sengun, when they faced the Pistons. They were also missing their head coach, Stephen Silas, who was attending a memorial service for his father, Paul Silas.

After falling behind double digits on multiple occasions, Houston used the efforts of unsung heroes to get itself back into the game before eventually securing its 12th win on the season.

“People,” Lucas said when asked how the Rockets (12-38) can duplicate their hustle and effort from Saturday. “We have to continue to have people play hard. It was a good win for us, and I think it will help the guys who have not been featured a lot this year.”

“KJ (Martin), Tari (Eason), (Daishen), Nix, you know they have been beaten up on, rather than praised. So hopefully, this gives them extra confidence. And Uz (Usman Garuba). What about Uz? Two threes (3-pointers) out of the corner, I went, ‘Oh no, oh no. Great shot, Uz.’ He hit two of those that kept us going.”

Silas is expected to be back on the bench for the Rockets when they host Oklahoma City on Wednesday. Houston is also expected to have Sengun (non-COVID-19 illness) back, as well.

Coach Lucas could not confirm if Porter or Green would play, but he said their rehabilitation process is going very well.

“Alperen practiced today, he looks good, and he’s ready to go,” Lucas said at Monday’s practice. “Jalen is progressing nicely. We don’t know the time frame, but he’s doing well.”

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‘Let go of the rope’: Spurs dominate Rockets for second time in two weeks

Daishen Nix dished out a career-high 9 assists in just 24 minutes, but that wasn’t nearly enough for the #Rockets in a deflating home loss to the Spurs, another rebuilding franchise.

The sudden trend of poor 3-point shooting by the Rockets accelerated in Monday’s listless 124-105 home loss (box score) to in-state rival San Antonio.

Though the Spurs entered with an identical record to Houston and in a similar rebuilding place as a franchise, the on-court products at Toyota Center were quite different.

Devin Vassell had a game-high 26 points and 5 assists for the Spurs on 10-of-17 shooting (58.8%), including 5-of-8 on 3-pointers (62.5%). As a team, Gregg Popovich’s club hit 17-of-34 from 3-point range (50%), whereas Houston made 5-of-24 from distance (20.8%) and has connected on 8-of-53 over its last two games (15.1%).

Big man Alperen Sengun led Houston with 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting (80%), though he was inconsistent defensively and was limited to 24 minutes by head coach Stephen Silas.

Making matters worse, it marks the second time in less than two weeks the Rockets (9-21) have lost convincingly to their rebuilding rivals, even with the Spurs (10-20) missing Keldon Johnson this time due to injury.

Young prospects Jalen Green, Kevin Porter Jr., and Jabari Smith Jr. set the tone on a cold night with a 2-of-12 showing from 3-point range (16.7%). Second-year guard Daishen Nix showed promise off the bench with a career-high 9 assists and 3 steals in 24 minutes. But fittingly for the night, Nix missed all four of his 3-point attempts.

Scroll on for highlights, analysis and postgame interview reaction following Monday’s loss to San Antonio. Houston plays the sixth game of its longest homestand of the season (seven games in total) on Wednesday night versus Orlando, with tipoff set for 7 p.m. Central.

With Daishen Nix ill, TyTy Washington takes advantage of first rotation minutes in Houston

With Daishen Nix under the weather, #Rockets rookie TyTy Washington took advantage of his first rotation minutes at point guard with 5 assists and 0 turnovers in 12 minutes.

It hasn’t been the best season for second-year Rockets guard Daishen Nix. In 15 minutes per game as Houston’s backup point guard, Nix is averaging 3.8 points, 2.6 assists and 1.4 turnovers while shooting just 35.3% overall and 37.9% on two-pointers.

In Thursday’s home game versus Miami, Nix was under the weather, according to head coach Stephen Silas. That created an opportunity for rookie guard TyTy Washington, who may have done enough to earn an encore performance with the Rockets.

In 12 reserve minutes, Washington hit 1-of-2 shots while dishing a career-high 5 assists, and he didn’t commit a turnover.

In postgame comments, Silas addressed his performance:

He did a good job. He ran the show. He got to his floater. He made plays for his teammates. Five assists, zero turnovers, that’s pretty good for his first taste. I thought he was a little uncomfortable early, but he settled in and did a good job.

Washington shared his excitement, as well:

It felt good. It felt like a dream come true. I’m just really blessed to be in this position. It was really fun. Unfortunately we didn’t get the job done, and we lost.

“It’s still basketball, at the end of the day,” he concluded.

The Rockets return to action Saturday at home versus Portland. While it is unclear if Nix will be available, it shouldn’t be a shock if Washington at least earns another look.

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Podcast: Five games in, how can Houston’s offense take the next step?

Through five games, the #Rockets have improved defensively from last season, but the offense seems to have stagnated. Friday’s @TheLagerLine explores potential areas of improvement.

Friday’s new episode of “The Lager Line” podcast features reaction from Ben DuBose and Paulo Alves to the first five games of the NBA’s 2022-23 regular season for the Houston Rockets.

Relative to 2021-22, the young and rebuilding Rockets (1-4) have improved from No. 30 in the league to No. 20 in net defensive rating (entering Thursday’s games), but they’ve stagnated at the No. 26 spot on offense. With that in mind, Friday’s show explores areas of potential improvement for head coach Stephen Silas, point guard Kevin Porter Jr. and shooting guard Jalen Green.

Other topics include the team’s dependence on Eric Gordon and Garrison Mathews as floor-spacing shooters; early impressions of Jabari Smith Jr. playing minutes at center and the impact of a five-out offense on other players; what to do with the rotation when Alperen Sengun (illness) returns; and which second-year guard — Daishen Nix or Josh Christopher — should get Houston’s final rotation spot.

Friday’s full podcast can be listened to below. Each episode of the show is also available via flagship radio station SportsTalk 790, as well as to all major podcast distributors under “The Lager Line.”

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