Rockets Rumors: Former No. 1 Overall Pick Anthony Bennett Waived by Houston

Anthony Bennett's stay in Houston was brief, as Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Wednesday that the former No. 1 overall pick has been waived by the Rockets.

The move comes after Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reported on Oct. 2 that Bennett was set to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery "that is expected to prevent him from earning a roster spot."

The Rockets signed Bennett in late July.

It was a non-guaranteed deal, Charania reported at the time.

Bennett was taken first overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2013, but the UNLV product has never found stable footing in the NBA. He spent only the 2013-14 season in Cleveland, averaging 4.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 0.3 assists across 52 games (no starts). 

Bennett was then included in the three-team trade that landed the Cavaliers Kevin Love and sent Bennett, Andrew Wiggins and Thaddeus Young to Minnesota.

In 2014-15 with the Timberwolves, Bennett saw marginal improvements by averaging 5.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 0.8 assists across 57 games (three starts). It would be his most productive NBA season. He spent 2015-16 with the Toronto Raptors and 2016-17 with the Brooklyn Nets. 

Since then, Bennett has played in the G League. Last season with the Los Angeles Clippers' G League affiliate, Bennett played 25 games (seven starts) and averaged 12.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists. 

Given Bennett's knee trouble, beginning with sitting out the Rockets' first practice with what was described then as knee soreness, along with his less-than-stellar performance at the NBA level to date, it's not surprising to see the Rockets cut ties. 

However, in mid-August, general manager Daryl Morey seemed high on Bennett's potential when speaking with Craig Ackerman on RocketsCast Live (h/t Rockets Wire):

"He's a shooting big. We think with Russell [Westbrook] here, a shooting big can have more value. He was one of the best bigs in the G-League—it was basically him, Isaiah [Hartenstein] and Terrence Jones, who we're also probably going to bring in here—who all were like the top bigs in the G-League. 

"Generally, that's a good pool to grab from. All of them have different skillsets. We’'e hoping one of them pans out."

The Rockets' G League affiliate would need to trade for Bennett should they want him (h/t David Weiner).