The big splash the Houston Rockets landed at the trade deadline in Steven Adams will eventually become a nice added piece to the growing young core. While Adams is out for the current season due to knee surgery, his fit on the roster for next season provides a much-needed depth on rebounding and defense.
The last update regarding the big man’s health was formally mentioned by general manager Rafael Stone, ensuring everyone that Adams will become fully ready for the Rockets’ training camp in September. To make things easier, Adams recorded a video of himself informally letting the NBA media know he is going to play for the Rockets. He also appears excited for the future as he showed the Rockets logo in the clip.
“I’m excited to play with them [Rockets]. I get to see Dillon Brooks again. Good to see his ugly mug more often now. I’m excited to go see Houston, what they are building. They’ve got good young players there. Should be cool. Meet all the fans and whatnot,” Adams shared.
During his time with the Grizzlies, Steven Adams was Dillon Brooks’ teammate. The two clearly have a great relationship together after performing in back-to-back playoff appearances.
“He’s [Adams] a great teammate to be around,” Brooks mentioned. “He’s selfless, would do anything the coaches ask for. He listens to each and every one of his players.”
More Steven Adams update
Two weeks after the deadline, the veteran center got back on the court and did some practice drills. This was his first time playing basketball since his knee surgery in November of last year.
“We didn’t go too hard cause we just wanna test it out,” Steven Adams said. “All that means is go through some drills. From their we’ll see how my body responds tomorrow and make any adjustments if need be. Felt great on the court. Felt really, really good. Pretty happy with today.”
It’s definitely a great sign for the Rockets to see Adams feel extremely content with his progress amid his injury recovery,.
Rockets’ focus on next season
As much as the Rockets faithful so desperately desires, this current season looks to be another year of growing pains for the team. Yes, they are better than the last three years combined. Still, the roster isn’t constructed as well as initially thought, with key players underperforming and the injury bug hampering the team throughout the season.
With a little over a month left in the final stretch and now seven games away from the final play-in spot in the West, the chances Houston makes a last-ditch effort to enter playoff contention is very unlikely. With that said, focusing on the offseason and what else they can do to improve the roster should be Houston’s top priority.
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