The Houston Rockets made one of the biggest moves of the 2025 NBA offseason by trading for Kevin Durant. While adding the two-time Finals MVP, the Rockets made other roster moves and renegotiated contracts in order to put together a title-contending team.
But just a month before the start of the 2025-26 season, Houston got an update on their starting point guard, Fred VanVleet, which could have serious implications on their year. According to Shams Charania, VanVleet suffered a torn ACL and is expected to miss the entire season.
“Just in: Houston Rockets’ Fred VanVleet has suffered a torn ACL, sources tell ESPN. A devastating, potentially season-ending loss for the Rockets with their starting point guard and leader,” Charania wrote in a post on X.
VanVleet has been the Rockets’ point guard for the past two seasons. He renegotiated his contract with the team to help them bring in Durant and other players over the summer, but will now be sidelined for the foreseeable future. Houston was atop lists ranking which teams had the best offseason and entered the year as title contenders, but the injury will drastically impact the team’s place on those lists.
VanVleet Out With ACL Injury
While the Rockets have gone under change in recent years, VanVleet has been a staple of the team over the past two years. Last season, in which Houston clinched the second seed in the West, he averaged 14.1 points, 5.6 assists, 3.7 rebounds, and 1.6 steals per game.
He had a drop in scoring and assists compared to his 2023-24 numbers, but was a veteran leader on a team highlighted by Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green. VanVleet was a big part of Houston’s reclaimed success after the James Harden era, along with head coach Ime Udoka.
“An immediate fit after signing a three-year deal with the team in the summer of 2023, VanVleet helped Houston improve from 22 wins to 41 in his first year,” Charania wrote on ESPN.com. “The Rockets then won 52 games last season to grab the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, ending a four-year postseason drought.”
Now with Durant, VanVleet was expected to take on a different role alongside the veteran scorer. He had seen some great success playing with some of the best small forwards of this generation (with Kawhi Leonard on the Toronto Raptors), but fans will now have to wait for him to play on the court with Houston’s newest star.
Houston’s Roster With Durant Going Forward
Before news of the VanVleet injury, the Rockets were predicted to be a top contender in the West. Along with adding Durant, the Rockets signed Dorian Finney-Smith and Clint Capela, while extending other key players on team-friendly contracts.
On the wings, Houston is one of the deepest teams in the league, with Durant, Finney-Smith, Amen Thompson, and Jabari Smith. In the frontcourt, they kept Sengun and re-signed Steven Adams, but the point guard depth is now a cause for concern.
Besides VanVleet, the Rockets only have Aaron Holiday and Reed Sheppard. The now-injured guard was expected to be a key piece in their new-look offense, but now, Houston is without a playmaker with a ton of experience.
With the NBA offseason coming to a close, the Rockets now don’t have a ton of options when it comes to finding a replacement. The New York Knicks recently picked up Malcolm Brogdon, but besides him, there aren’t too many other point guards available.
Russell Westbrook and Ben Simmons remain unsigned, and while there have been no reports on links between the Rockets and either player, they might be the franchise’s best options.
Regardless, with VanVleet now out for an extended period of time, things have changed for Houston. They’ll be a top trade candidate heading into the season to take advantage of what is expected to be one of, if not the, final stops in Durant’s career.
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