Houston Rockets news: All-Star weekend participants, schedule struggles and more

We’re approaching All-Star weekend and it couldn’t come at a better time for the Houston Rockets. While they’ve got a few players who will be involved in some of the festivities during All-Star weekend, a few days off to rest is vital for a team that’s been attacked by the injury bug. It’s been so jarring that the team’s chemistry has taken a hit, and it seems they need time to regroup.

Rockets represented on All-Star weekend

Until recently, the Houston Rockets had been rolling along having one of their best seasons in recent memory. They’d spent most of the year holding second place in the Western Conference until a six-game losing streak dropped them down to fourth where they currently sit tied with the LA Lakers.

Despite that, it’s been a very good season for the Rockets thus far and because of that, they’ve been rewarded with representation during some of the All-Star weekend festivities. Alperen Sengun will participate in his first All-Star game as part of Charles Barkley’s Global Stars team, in the new format of a four-team mini-tournament.

In his fourth year, Sengun is averaging a double-double with 19 points and 10.4 rebounds per game along with adding nearly five (4.9) assists. Not only has Sengun been holding it down offensively, but he’s also become a defensive anchor for Houston under head coach Ime Udoka. Sengun has ranked as high as third in defensive win shares and seventh in defensive rating this season.

Another Rocket having a breakout year, Amen Thompson, will also be busy during All-Star weekend. Not only will he be home in the Bay Area (Oakland) for the festivities but Thompson will also participate in the Rising Stars game playing for Hall of Famer, Mitch Richmond’s team. Run TMC (Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond and Chris Mullin) are honorary coaches for the event. Thompson will have the opportunity to play alongside twin brother Ausar on team Richmond. Reed Sheppard will also compete in the Rising Stars game playing for the squad representing the G-League.

The All-Star break can’t come quickly enough in H-Town

If any team needs a long break right now it’s the Houston Rockets. The injury bug has hit them hard lately and some time off would be great for this group to rest and regroup. Houston is 1-6 in its last seven games which included a six-game losing streak. They beat Toronto on Sunday and have two more games against Phoenix (tonight) and Golden State (Thursday) before the All-Star break.

Fred VanVleet hasn’t played for almost two weeks due to straining his right ankle. Alperen Sengun had been a little banged up and then left Sunday’s win over the Raptors three minutes into the game with a back injury. As of now, Sengun is day-to-day. It’ll be interesting to see how this is handled because Sengun is supposed to participate in his first All-Star game this weekend.

Tari Eason and veteran Steven Adams have also been dealing with injuries of late. Adams has had some left ankle soreness causing him to sit out Sunday’s game against Toronto. Eason has a lower left leg injury and sat out in the win on Sunday. The third-year forward also missed over a month between December and January with the leg injury. Then Jabari Smith Jr. has been out for over a month due to a fractured bone in his hand. The timeframe for Smith’s injury was set at 4-8 weeks. So, he probably won’t be back until the end of the month at the earliest.

Houston needs to utilize the week off to rest up and heal before heading into the final two-month stretch of the regular season. Besides the past two weeks, the Rockets have held up against some of the best teams in both conferences. However, one bad stretch can also be the beginning of the end for such a young team. Coach Udoka will need to get his guys refocused on the task at hand. Despite the recent losses, Houston still has a good chance of finishing as one of the top two or three teams in the West if they can get healthy.