Season debut for Nene today
Rockets center Nene is expected to make his season debut Saturday against the Chicago Bulls.
“The important thing is I feel better,” Nene said. “In the last two, three practices, I did what I needed to do to see the movement I’m going to use in a game, especially in my style, my game style.”
Nene, 36, had a strained calf muscle through training camp and then reaggravated the injury in the preseason, forcing him to miss the first 21 games of the season.
“It was hard (to wait),” Nene said. “We picked the right time. Like a professional, I did what I’m supposed to do.
“The competitiveness is the same. If you don’t have that competitive spirit, there’s no point to be here that long, to play that long.”
Knight goes to G League
Guard Brandon
Knight, who has been out since the 2016-17 season when he had knee surgery to repair a torn left ACL, took a major step in his comeback, playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Rockets’ G League affiliate.
Knight, 26, had a followup surgery this summer, pushing back his return to the court after he was acquired along with center
Marquese Chriss in the trade that sent Ryan Anderson and De’Anthony Melton to Phoenix. “It’s the first step in a long process,” coach Mike
D’Antoni said. “It’s going to take a little while. We want to make sure he is healthy for him. He has a nice future ahead. Got to make sure he gets there.”
D’Antoni was happy to have the G League to be used for the next step of Knight’s rehab.
“I think it’s terrific,” D’Antoni said. “More players should — Major League Baseball does it all the time — take advantage of it if it’s possible and if it’s the right circumstances. Especially, being out a year and a half, more or less he can get a good run in without sacrificing anything. We don’t practice a whole lot. That’s the only way to get in decent shape. I think it’s a great tool.”
Tough to lead while sidelined
When the Rockets and Spurs struggled through recent road trips, they did not have the influence of their oldest, most-experienced players to help guide them with Nene and
Pau Gasol out with injuries.
“I don’t think players can have a voice when they’re not playing,” coach
Mike D’Antoni said. “The guys playing look at them like ‘oh yeah, right.’ You have to be on the floor and playing to have a big voice. You can help kids along and stuff, but your main guys will have that voice.
“Leadership comes from doing. How does he prepare for every game? How does he prepare for practice? How does he talk and understand what coaches want? Leadership is not ‘c’mon guys.’ It’s not a rah, rah kind of thing. Leadership is doing.”
Nene does not make a lot of speeches, but he does believe he has an influence.
“I’m not the kind of guy who speaks a lot on the court,” Nene said. “It’s more like actions, more like presence, more like a spirit. Me, Pau Gasol, we’ve been doing it for basically two decades.”
Nene, who’s in his 17th NBA season, is expected to make his season debut Saturday. Gasol, in his 18th season, has been limited to nine games with no timetable announced for when he might return from a sore left foot.
“I think there’s a lot to being around,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “Those interactions, before a game, after a game, whether it’s a meal or practice or sitting around in the locker room, teams figure out who they believe in the most, who they trust, who they feel comfortable around.
“Certain guys bring people things when they’re not going well — a sense of humor — all those sorts of things. Pau’s a wonderful guy.”