Houston Rockets Will Need to Add Another Point Guard With or Without Trade

The Houston Rockets have come a long way in the last few seasons. Three seasons ago, the Rockets were nearing the end of their rebuild and were ready to take the next step: developing their young players into a team that could compete for a playoff spot.

They made changes both on and off the court to achieve that goal. First, they signed Ime Udoka as their next head coach to change the entire team structure—the Rockets then made changes on the court, bringing in veterans Dillon Brooks and Fred VanVleet.

Brooks was brought in to lead the defense, and VanVleet was brought in to lead the offense and become the team leader. One of the Rockets' biggest issues during the rebuild was turnovers and having issues getting into their offense.

The arrival of VanVleet solved both of those issues as the Rockets had their best season ever in terms of turnovers in VanVleet's first season with the team. VanVleet also had a career high in assists in 2023-24 and helped the Rockets improve by a league-best 19 games.

VanVleet also played a career-high 36.8 minutes in 2023-24, which Ime Udoka acknowledged needed to change the following season. The Rockets used Aaron Holiday and, at times, a rookie named Amen Thompson as the backup point guard, but they didn't have a steady backup for VanVleet.

The Rockets wanted to take some of the burden off VanVleet in his second season and were hoping newly drafted Reed Sheppard could fill that backup point guard role. Sheppard was drafted third overall by the Rockets in the 2024 draft. Sheppard played one year at Kentucky, where he led the nation in 3-point shooting.

Even though the Rockets did lighten some of the lead ball handler role for VanVleet with Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun handling more of the primary ball handler duties, the Rockets still had trouble finding someone to take over the backup point guard position.

Sheppard struggled throughout the season, which eventually led to his minutes being reduced, and the other possible option, Amen Thompson, spent most of his time at the forward position. VanVleet's minutes did go down slightly in 2024-25, but in the playoffs, he played 40 minutes as the Rockets' coaching staff didn't trust anyone else to handle the point guard duties.

That is an area the Rockets will have to address this offseason. It has been reported that the Rockets want to give Sheppard a larger role next season, but even if that is the case, you can't depend on a second-year player who hasn't spent much time at that position.

It also seems that Thompson has found his position in the future as the Rockets' starting power forward or small forward and will only occasionally play some point guard. There aren't many names available in free agency, so the Rockets may look to make a smaller trade if they don't go all in on a Kevin Durant trade.

For the Rockets to take the next step and become a championship contender, they will need to solidify the backup point guard position. VanVleet is approaching 30 and will likely need his minutes to decrease, not increase, in the coming years. Of course, the Rockets and VanVleet still have to decide if they are going to pick up his third year or work out a new deal. All signs, however, point to the Rockets giving VanVleet an extension and reducing his yearly salary.

Whether the Rockets trade for Durant or not, they will need to improve their depth at guard, which could come in the form of a trade or Sheppard stepping into that role next season.