The Houston Rockets suffered a major setback before the 2025-2026 NBA season started. The veteran guard Fred VanVleet suffered an injury that placed his availability for the year in jeopardy immediately.
The Rockets didn’t panic. They placed their trust in the guys on the roster and hoped for the best. So far, the Rockets have been decent.
After a loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday, the Rockets dropped to 23-15 on the season. They remain sixth in the Western Conference, with a 0.5 game lead over the Phoenix Suns. Houston still might be in the early playoff picture, but they could use some help.
The NBA legend Dwyane Wade recently made a strong suggestion for Houston.
“They need an organizer. A quarterback, a conductor. They need a guy who can get guys in their spots. They need a guy who can play with bigs. They got Sengun and Adams. Chris Paul is out there,” Wade said on Thursday. “They need a veteran. They need a guy who doesn’t need to score. Chris Paul is out there. Just throwing that out there.”
Paul didn’t anticipate sitting on a roster while being sent home from a team when he signed with the Los Angeles Clippers over the offseason. The veteran guard planned to spend his final NBA season with a club that considers him a legend. Instead, they decided to drop him from the rotation and request that he stay away from the team.
The future Hall of Famer isn’t available on the open market. If the Rockets wanted to acquire him now, they would have to make a trade with the Clippers. So far, Paul doesn’t seem to be generating too much interest in the trade market, but the veteran guard recently made it clear that he’s staying ready.
“I’m working out and training every day,” Paul said. “In all honesty, with the way that stuff went down, for me, I just love this game so much that I don’t want it to end like that. I’ve enjoyed the time, for sure. I get a chance to go to my kids’ games, but I don’t know what team I hope to finish with.”
The assumption is that Paul would prefer to stay close to home. It’s unclear if another California-based team has interest, but he does have familiarity with Houston, playing there from 2017 to 2019.
It’ll take more time before the Paul situation gets resolved. He wrapped up his second Clippers run with averages of 2.9 points and 3.3 assists, while shooting 32 percent from the field.
More NBA news: James Harden passes Shaquille O'Neal in NBA record books