Rockets Rumors: Brandon Knight Assigned to G League, Nearing Return from Surgery
The Houston Rockets have reportedly assigned guard Brandon Knight to the G League as he nears his NBA return after undergoing knee surgery.
According to Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic, Knight will play for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers against the Salt Lake City Stars on Friday night to begin his rehab assignment.
Knight underwent surgery in September after the Rockets acquired him in an offseason trade with the Phoenix Suns.
The 26-year-old Knight was originally selected with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft out of Kentucky by the Detroit Pistons. Knight spent two seasons with them and parts of two campaigns with the Milwaukee Bucks before getting dealt to Phoenix.
He appeared in 54 games during the 2016-17 season and put up 11.0 points, 2.4 assists and 2.2 rebounds per game.
That came on the heels of arguably the best season of his career in 2015-16 when he averaged 19.6 points, 5.1 assists and 3.9 rebounds.
The biggest factor holding Knight back throughout his career has been his inability to stay healthy.
Knight missed all of last season with a torn ACL, and prior to that, he hadn't appeared in more than 63 games in a season since 2013-14.
While Knight will likely need some time to knock off the rust, he averages 15.2 points and 4.3 assists per game over the course of his career while shooting a respectable 35.7 percent from beyond the arc, which should play well in Houston's uptempo offense.
After earning the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference and falling one win short of reaching the NBA Finals last season, the Rockets have experienced a significant drop-off this season. Houston is 14th in the West at 9-11, and it desperately needs a spark to get back in contention.
Knight may not play a huge role once he completes his rehab assignment, but if he can be a quality backup to guards Chris Paul and James Harden, it could go a long way toward making the Rockets a deeper and more complete team.
