Westbrook, Capela and Gordon are among players out for next game.
As shorthanded as the Rockets were against the Pacers on Friday, the situation could be worse Saturday in Minneapolis.
Guard Russell Westbrook is likely to sit out the second half of the back-to-back, coach Mike D’Antoni said, which would move Austin Rivers into the Rockets’ fifth starting lineup in the season’s first 13 games.
Center Clint Capela, who was considered questionable to play against the Timberwolves, will be out with a concussion, D’Antoni said. With Eric Gordon out following his arthroscopic knee surgery, Danuel House Jr. is questionable to return after missing two games with a bruised back.
If House does not return, the Rockets will be without three starters and their sixth man in Minneapolis on Saturday.
With Capela out, Tyson Chandler moved into the starting lineup Friday. But D’Antoni hoped to limit his playing time, moving second-year players Isaiah Hartenstein and Gary Clark into the rotation for the first time this season.
Given the limited minutes at center, D’Antoni said he especially looked forward to seeing how Hartenstein would perform.
“I think he can play,” D’Antoni said. “He demonstrated that down in the Valley (with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers) all the time. He plays well. He just needs to do it up here consistently. This is a good opportunity for him. I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do.”
Hartenstein, the MVP of the G League Finals last season, has averaged 24 points and 16.7 rebounds in three games with the Vipers this season.
With Gordon out, rookie Chris Clemons moved into the rotation Wednesday and would receive extra playing time with Westbrook sitting out Saturday.
“They (Clark, Hartenstein and Clemons) should be ready to play and take up the slack,” D’Antoni said. “You will learn about the end of your bench quicker than we really wanted to, but you will learn some things and that might effect some things going forward. Might be able to save minutes (with others). It’s an opportunity for these guys to show what they got.
“We’re good. We just have to win as many games as we can now, but I think in the end, we’ll be who we are, and I think we know who we are.”
Carmelo won’t face old team
The timing of Carmelo Anthony’s return to the NBA brought a variety of coincidences, though his actual return to the court could come a day too late for a reunion with the Rockets.
Anthony was expected to sign with Portland with the Trail Blazers in San Antonio, where his tenure with the Rockets effectively ended. He was joining the Blazers with the Rockets playing the Pacers, their opponent last season when general manager Daryl Morey announced that Anthony would no longer be with the Rockets.
He could have returned in time to play against the team he most recently played for, though ESPN reported Friday that Anthony will not make his Blazers debut until Tuesday in New Orleans.
“I’m happy for him,” said Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni, who was also Anthony’s coach in New York. “I hope it’s a good fit, and I hope it works out. He’s a good player and a good guy. I hope it doesn’t work out too much because it’s Portland. We still got to battle them. Personally, I hope it works out for him.”
McMillan believes star duo will fit
Though Pacers coach Nate McMillan described meshing Russell Westbrook and James Harden in the Rockets’ backcourt as a work in progress, he joined those expressing confidence that the combination will be effective.
“They’re two very talented players,” McMillan said. “They’ve been together before. Any time you are going to have a player join a team like Westbrook, it takes time for those guys to figure out each other, even though they played together (in Oklahoma City). It’s going to work. You got two guys out there that are a threat to put up big points every single night. It’s a challenge for your defense.”