Tag: Mike D’Antoni

As NBA probe lingers, Rockets remain without Danuel House in Game 4

“The investigation is going on,” Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said. “When they come out with their ruling, then we’ll go from there.”

Early Thursday, there was optimism that a final ruling on the playing status of Houston forward Danuel House Jr. would come prior to that night’s game. However, that did not come to fruition, and the Rockets remained without their sixth man for a second straight playoff game.

In his pregame media session, Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said House remained out, with a qualifier: “As far as I know.”

When asked if he believed House could return at a later date during the second-round series versus the Los Angeles Lakers, D’Antoni said:

I don’t know. The investigation is going on. When they come out with their ruling or whatever, then we’ll go from there.

ESPN reported Wednesday that the league was weighing the imposition of a potential 10-day quarantine period on House, which would likely make him unavailable for the rest of the series. The extended quarantine is due to the potential of a delayed positive test result for COVID-19 among any NBA player or staffer who breaks the “bubble” protocols.

However, the league has yet to make a final ruling on whether House actually broke any of its rules, in large part because all parties involved have consistently denied his involvement.

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Per The Athletic, the NBA has “circumstantial evidence” suggesting that House violated protocols in an incident that took place Monday night at the team’s hotel. However, House denies any wrongdoing, and it seems that the unauthorized female at Houston’s hotel (reportedly a COVID-19 testing official) has denied his involvement, as well.

The circumstantial evidence appears to involve “door data,” referring to a possible opening of the door to House’s hotel room during the time window in question, per the Houston Chronicle‘s Jonathan Feigen.

While testing officials are allowed inside the bubble, they go in and out each day and (unlike players) do not live there. Thus, as with maintenance staff, the NBA has protocols in place to minimize the potential exposure of those workers to personnel living at the bubble. The woman said she had contact with Tyson Chandler (who also sat out Game 3 for personal remains) and another player who wasn’t House, but the NBA’s probe reportedly cleared Chandler and is currently focused on House.

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Regardless of the league’s final decision, the storyline doesn’t appear likely to go away any time soon. Even if House is cleared, the Rockets as an organization would likely be frustrated that he was held out of Game 3 and Game 4 before the NBA’s probe had determined any guilt.

In nine playoff games, the 6-foot-6 House has averaged 11.4 points (35.8% on 3-pointers) and 5.8 rebounds in 31.0 minutes, and he’s among the most athletic and versatile options for Houston’s switch-heavy defense. In Sunday’s Game 2, the 27-year-old had 13 points and five rebounds off the bench, and he hit 3-of-7 from 3-point range (42.9%).

With House unavailable during a 10-point loss in Game 3, only one Houston reserve (Jeff Green) scored, and the Los Angeles bench outscored those on the Rockets by a commanding 42-16 margin.

Game 4 between the Rockets and Lakers tipped off at 6:00 p.m. Central on Thursday, with a national TV broadcast on TNT. Houston now trails the West semifinal series by a 2-1 margin, which makes Game 4 very important to their chances. Historically, only 12 teams in NBA playoff history have overcome a 3-1 deficit to win a best-of-seven series.

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