Rockets send first round pick TyTy Washington to G-League

Rockets rookie first-round pick TyTy Washington has been sent to Houston’s NBAGL affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, as he continues to rehabilitate from his sprained left knee, per Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle.

 “I’m excited,” Washington, the No. 29 pick out of Kentucky this summer, said. “I can’t wait. I can play and get my feet under me, go down there, have fun. This is the game I love. I can go down there and handle my business. And when I get back up here, get my moment and do what I’ll do down there and help win games.” 

“He just needs to play,” Rockets GM Rafael Stone said. “We very obviously value the G League. Almost all of our players have spent real extensive time down there. It’s more of an abnormality for people not to. He’s coming off an injury. He needs to get back in game shape and play minutes. Right now, we don’t have that opportunity for him here.”

There’s more out of the Southwest Division:

• Starting Rockets point guard Kevin Porter Jr. may have unlocked something as a passer lately, having averaged 5.5 APG across his last two contests, Feigen writes in a separate piece.
  
  
• Pelicans star forward Zion Williamson has struggled defensively thus far this season, to the point where William Guillory of The Athletic wonders if it could impact how far New Orleans can actually go in the postseason this year.
  
  
• Grizzlies All-Star point guard Ja Morant opines that he and breakout shooting guard Desmond Bane are the NBA’s current best backcourt, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. “Top two, not [number] two [to any other guard twosome],” Morant responded to a question about where the duo ranks among league backcourt tandems. “That’s the easiest question ever.” Bane has taken a major leap in expanding his breadth as a scorer. “That was the goal this summer,” Bane said. “Not just be a 3-point shooter, be able to affect the game. Being able to set it up for myself and my teammates, getting to the free-throw line. All of that will help me remain consistent.”