Mar 25, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet (5) drives with the ball as Atlanta Hawks guard Vit Krejci (27) defends during the second quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Trae Young Shares His Reaction to Fred VanVleet Injury News

Originally posted on Atlanta Hawks on SI
By Jackson Caudell | Last updated Sep 22, 2025 7:42 PM ET

One of the teams expected to compete for the NBA Championship took a devastating blow today.

According to multiple report's Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet suffered a torn ACL today and is likely going to be out for the season.

Sources: Houston's Fred VanVleet has torn ACL, may miss entire season - via ESPN https://t.co/AZlA2KPOU7
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 22, 2025

Houston made several big moves this offseason to try and put themselves in contention for the NBA Finals, but this is going to be hard to come back from. The Rockets are not deep at guard and the are likely going to be counting a lot on Reed Sheppard now. Sheppard was the No. 3 overall pick a year ago, but played sparingl as a rookie.

Young's reaction

Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

A lot of reaction is coming in from NBA stars about this injury, including Hawks point guard Trae Young:

F**k man praying for Fred, speedy recovery Killa! @FredVanVleet
— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) September 22, 2025

The Rockets being hard-capped at the first apron is going to make it hard to find an adequate replacement. Earlier in the offseason, the Hawks made a shrewd move by signing Rockets two-way player N'Faly Dante to a contract. Because the Rockets could not match, they lost a talented young player for nothing. They are going to be in a tricky spot now with this VanVleet news.

Dante appeared in four games with the Houston Rockets on a two-way contract during the 2024-25 season, averaging 6.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 12.8 minutes of action (.769 FG%, .800 FT%). In his NBA debut against the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 3, he tallied a near double-double, contributing 10 points, nine rebounds, one assist and two blocks in 18 minutes of play. He became just the second player in the NBA since 1983-84 to post those numbers in an NBA debut while appearing in fewer than 20 minutes, joining Kevin Love (Oct. 29, 2008, vs. Sacramento).

The 6-11 center saw action in 42 total games (all starts) with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League this past season, averaging 15.1 points, 9.8 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.0 steal in 26.8 minutes (.743 FG%).

Prior to going undrafted in 2024, Dante appeared in 103 games (84 starts) across a five-year collegiate career at Oregon (2019-24), averaging 11.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 1.1 steals and 1.3 blocks in 23.4 minutes (.654 FG%). A two-time All-Pac 12 First Team member, he averaged 17.0 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.9 blocks in 22 games (21 starts) in his final season at Oregon, en route to a nod on the All-Pac 12 Defensive Team and earning Pac-12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors.