Black gets shot in Nene’s place

Rockets center Nene on Tuesday missed a second consecutive game with a sprained right foot, with coach Mike D’Antoni unsure about whether Nene will return Thursday for the start of a brief road trip to Phoenix and Memphis.

Nene’s absence moved Tarik Black into the rotation, offering an earlyseason look at why the Rockets considered him an important offseason addition as a third center.

In his fourth season, Black is a more seasoned defensive player, making his understanding and abilities in the Rockets’ schemes a strength that does not get rusty when Nene and Clint Capela man the center position.

“It’s hard to find a third center that is still kind of young be that good,” D’Antoni said. “A lot of times it will be a rook and he would not have that experience to be able to do that, so we’re extremely lucky to have him. I expect him to step right in without us missing too much of anything.”

There could be a potential to be rusty on the other end of the court, but the Rockets worked quickly to get Black involved on Sunday. Black was on the floor for 13 seconds in Sunday’s first quarter before James Harden found him with an alley oop that Black slammed with a one-hand catch and finish.

“When you get a feel for it, it definitely puts you in a better groove, especially in that facet,” Black said. “That was a nice lob, a nice pass to be recognized that way. It catches your rhythm for the rest of the game. That was just a pickand-roll. James found me. It was a beautiful thing.”

Black does not have enough attempts to qualify to be considered among the league leaders, but he is making 71.4 percent of his attempts this season. Capela is the official league leader, making 69.7 percent after Tuesday’s game.

Black hit 5 of 8 shots while scoring 13 points in just 16 minutes of action in the Rockets’ loss to the Raptors on Tuesday night.