September 30, 2025 • 4 mins
Anticipating the start of the 2025-26 NBA season, Houston wasted no time deepening its roster's depth this offseason, re-signing players and picking up additional prospects, all with the hopes of furthering their appearance in the postseason. With a turnaround year in not making the playoffs in 2024 to making the semi-finals last year, the Rockets look to be a big competitor coming out of the West. Taking a sharp turn just weeks before the initial start of the season, Houston Guard Fred VanVleet tears his ACL during practice, appearing to be out for the season. Revisiting the additions of 2x NBA Champion Kevin Durant and Clint Capela, and now with Houston's main guard possibly missing the season's entirety, should the Rockets be looking for another Guard to replace Fred?
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Do you see myself sign a contract in session.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
I can't tell you exactly when that will happen, but
I do see it happening obviously.
Speaker 1 (00:09):
You know what he brings. Everyone should be you guys
know right, I don't have to it's not new. I'm
surprised you with anything new. But yeah, so yeah, he's
a good dude, man.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
I mean, I'm expecting it. You know what I'm saying.
It's something that I've been working on, something that something
that I feel like I deserve, something that I'm gonna
show that I deserve. But at the end of the day,
it doesn't really matter, you know what I'm saying. It's
something that that you can that you can see. Uh,
he may really don't care about you know what I'm saying.
He gonna play who playing? So this is it's a
it's a small issue. It's a small question that everybody has,
(00:42):
you know what I'm saying. But at the end of
the day, with a team, at the end of the day,
we're gonna we're gonna compete with the five us on
the floor, and that's gonna be what it is. But
to answer your question, not nobody has has talked to
me that hasn't even been mentioned yet.
Speaker 3 (00:54):
I mean, I know that when Ari was in here
he mentioned a disabled player exception that they could possibly
be able to use. I mean, at least from the
early going, it sounds like from what he made a
Doka told Matt and Ross yesterday that it's gonna be
by committee. I mean, reed Shepherd go with there on holiday,
maybe even at times, you know, Amen Thompson there at
(01:14):
the point. But I think they're gonna start out that way.
I mean, and when the when the news happened, that's
the way that I thought it was going to break down, Sean,
is that they'll they'll start out with those guys and
then if they feel like at the deadline that some
sort of acquisitions need to be made, some sort of
upgrade anybody else like that, that's a possibility. But it also,
at least from what I you know, was gathering yesterday,
(01:37):
I don't think that they're counting on Fred being done
for the year. Like I think that they believe that
he attacks this rehab that maybe close to the playoffs,
that he could be back and then you know, I
guess you would hope at that point that he's able
to go.
Speaker 4 (01:50):
Say we're October. Tomorrow's first of October, right, right, So
where got October? The season ends in June the NBA Championship,
So how many all of October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May.
If you get to the NBA Finals, you're asking a
guy who's got quick twitch and cutting all the time. Now,
(02:12):
if it was a meniscus or an mcl I would
say yes, an ACL Right, dude, that's on a hard
one floor. Yeah, that's hard, because that's awfully ambitious. It's
awfully ambitious, and I understand and maybe, but by the
time you get back and get in basketball shape and
(02:33):
all you got to go through. This used to be
about a fourteen month injury when ouncer, and then we
saw guys get back in nine months and eight months
and ten months. I just don't see how even if
he made it in seven months, that gets you to April.
So you're now getting the plus depending on where they
are you'd like to have it, but I can't imagine
(02:55):
you'd get any more than postseason or late season. Now,
if you get it, you get it. But it's awfully
ambitious to think that he can come back in eight
or nine months and be fully ready to go, and
is it worth that risk to come back premature. This
is one of those I always say, if you think
you're ready, take an extra two weeks to a month
with an injury like that or inn achilles, because I've
(03:17):
seen I saw Dante Culpepper when Saban was there. Remember
when he came from Minnesota, was the quarterback in Miami
and he'd had that knee injury and came back from
it and they put he put in. Dude, he was
still limping in the pocket and Culpeper was a hell
of a player in Minnesota. Limping in the pocket he
was he never had it, He didn't have any more
movement in the rest of it, and he was never
the same. How do you waited a month? Who knows
(03:37):
what would have happened. I just I think it's awfully ambitious.
If you're the Rockets, and if you're a fan, do
not prepare for Fred van Vliet to be your point
guard before April. And if he is your point guard
when he comes back, then it's a blessing. But you
got to prepare this season and the way you go
about your personnel, like Van Vliet's not going to play
for it. That's off. That's a bit ambitious for me.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Get to know Aaron Holliday, get to know Reed Shepherd
is what it sounds like. John and Jason Worke in
you want to join them seven one three two one
two five seven ninety
Do you see myself sign a contract in session.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
I can't tell you exactly when that will happen, but
I do see it happening obviously.
Speaker 1 (00:09):
You know what he brings. Everyone should be you guys
know right, I don't have to it's not new. I'm
surprised you with anything new. But yeah, so yeah, he's
a good dude, man.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
I mean, I'm expecting it. You know what I'm saying.
It's something that I've been working on, something that something
that I feel like I deserve, something that I'm gonna
show that I deserve. But at the end of the day,
it doesn't really matter, you know what I'm saying. It's
something that that you can that you can see. Uh,
he may really don't care about you know what I'm saying.
He gonna play who playing? So this is it's a
it's a small issue. It's a small question that everybody has,
(00:42):
you know what I'm saying. But at the end of
the day, with a team, at the end of the day,
we're gonna we're gonna compete with the five us on
the floor, and that's gonna be what it is. But
to answer your question, not nobody has has talked to
me that hasn't even been mentioned yet.
Speaker 3 (00:54):
I mean, I know that when Ari was in here
he mentioned a disabled player exception that they could possibly
be able to use. I mean, at least from the
early going, it sounds like from what he made a
Doka told Matt and Ross yesterday that it's gonna be
by committee. I mean, reed Shepherd go with there on holiday,
maybe even at times, you know, Amen Thompson there at
(01:14):
the point. But I think they're gonna start out that way.
I mean, and when the when the news happened, that's
the way that I thought it was going to break down, Sean,
is that they'll they'll start out with those guys and
then if they feel like at the deadline that some
sort of acquisitions need to be made, some sort of
upgrade anybody else like that, that's a possibility. But it also,
at least from what I you know, was gathering yesterday,
(01:37):
I don't think that they're counting on Fred being done
for the year. Like I think that they believe that
he attacks this rehab that maybe close to the playoffs,
that he could be back and then you know, I
guess you would hope at that point that he's able
to go.
Speaker 4 (01:50):
Say we're October. Tomorrow's first of October, right, right, So
where got October? The season ends in June the NBA Championship,
So how many all of October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May.
If you get to the NBA Finals, you're asking a
guy who's got quick twitch and cutting all the time. Now,
(02:12):
if it was a meniscus or an mcl I would
say yes, an ACL Right, dude, that's on a hard
one floor. Yeah, that's hard, because that's awfully ambitious. It's
awfully ambitious, and I understand and maybe, but by the
time you get back and get in basketball shape and
(02:33):
all you got to go through. This used to be
about a fourteen month injury when ouncer, and then we
saw guys get back in nine months and eight months
and ten months. I just don't see how even if
he made it in seven months, that gets you to April.
So you're now getting the plus depending on where they
are you'd like to have it, but I can't imagine
(02:55):
you'd get any more than postseason or late season. Now,
if you get it, you get it. But it's awfully
ambitious to think that he can come back in eight
or nine months and be fully ready to go, and
is it worth that risk to come back premature. This
is one of those I always say, if you think
you're ready, take an extra two weeks to a month
with an injury like that or inn achilles, because I've
(03:17):
seen I saw Dante Culpepper when Saban was there. Remember
when he came from Minnesota, was the quarterback in Miami
and he'd had that knee injury and came back from
it and they put he put in. Dude, he was
still limping in the pocket and Culpeper was a hell
of a player in Minnesota. Limping in the pocket he
was he never had it, He didn't have any more
movement in the rest of it, and he was never
the same. How do you waited a month? Who knows
(03:37):
what would have happened. I just I think it's awfully ambitious.
If you're the Rockets, and if you're a fan, do
not prepare for Fred van Vliet to be your point
guard before April. And if he is your point guard
when he comes back, then it's a blessing. But you
got to prepare this season and the way you go
about your personnel, like Van Vliet's not going to play
for it. That's off. That's a bit ambitious for me.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Get to know Aaron Holliday, get to know Reed Shepherd
is what it sounds like. John and Jason Worke in
you want to join them seven one three two one
two five seven ninety
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