No timetable for Paul’s return to lineup
Rockets guard Chris Paul said he is progressing from the bruised left knee that has kept him out of five of six games and will keep him sidelined for the second half of the back-to-back in Memphis on Saturday, but he has no timetable in mind for a return.
“I have no clue, no clue,” Paul said. “Just dealing with it.”
Paul bumped knees with Memphis’ Mario Chalmers on Oct. 11 and played in the Rockets’ season opener Oct. 17 before they decided to hold him out until he was deemed 100 percent. He said Friday he had no idea the injury would keep him out so long. Missing Friday’s game at Charlotte kept the North Carolina native out of his only game of the season in that state.
Coach Mike D’Antoni said the Rockets plan to have Paul’s knee reevaluated next week when the team returns to Houston to get a better idea of when he might return.
“He’s doing better,” D’Antoni said. “He’s getting closer. He’s champing at the bit, that’s for sure. He’s about ready to take off the reins. We have to hold him out as long as we can until he gets completely well.”
Howard reflects on Houston stay
Though in just his
second season since he played for the Rockets, Hornets center Dwight Howard saw just four former teammates — James Harden, Trevor Ariza, Clint Capela and Isaiah Canaan — on the other side Friday.
“It’s still a former team,” Howard said. “It’s the Houston Rockets. I was so far removed from whatever happened a couple years ago. I
thought we had some really good times together. We did something in the franchise that hadn’t been done since Hakeem Olajuwon in his day, going to the Western Conference finals. The city is an amazing place. I enjoyed my time there. I miss all the community work.”
Howard signed with Atlanta as free agent after the Rockets’ 41-41 2015- 16 season before he was traded to Charlotte to play for Hornets coach Steve Clifford, an assistant with Howard in Los Angeles and Orlando.
Big anniversary for Harden
Five years to the day after he was traded to the Rockets, guard James Harden called the years since the stunning trade from the Oklahoma City Thunder “the best five years of my life.”
Harden has been an All-NBA selection in four of his five seasons with the Rockets and MVP runner-up twice. He signed a contract extension in each of the past two seasons with his current deal worth $228 million over six years after. He has had career bests in scoring, rebounding and assists in each of the past three seasons, averaging 29.1 points, 11.2 assists and 8.1 rebounds last season.