Rockets’ Look to New Point Guard Plan After Fred VanVleet Injury

With less than a month left to finally kickstart their championship hunt, the Houston Rockets received the worst possible news that instantly changed everything.

As just recently announced, Fred VanVleet suffered from what has been an ACL tear. The franchise guard reportedly sustained the right knee injury during the team's unofficial minicamp in The Bahamas and will ultimately undergo a surgery this week.

This is undeniably a devastating one for the Rockets ahead of the team's highly-anticipated 2025-26 season. After a dramatic 52-win run last year, Houston ascended as a true title contender by acing this offseason, signing top role players Dorian Finney-Smith and Clint Capela and bringing in superstar Kevin Durant.

But VanVleet’s potential season-ending absence completely alters the group's fortunes, and this leaves a huge question mark on who would be the Rockets’ floor general moving forward.

Rockets to Rely More on Reed Sheppard, Amen Thompson

Despite a successful summer of improving their roster, the Rockets still have glaring depth issues at the backcourt. And with VanVleet gone, this concern became even more of a head-scratcher.

VanVleet stands as the undisputed leader of the Rockets, serving as an instrumental piece for the team's meteoric rise especially from last year. He was that steady presence on and off the court, and his production from leading the charge, scoring the ball, and setting up his teammates would be tremendously missed.

With minimal options to use out of their hard-capped first apron situation, the expectation for the Rockets to solve the loss of VanVleet is to simply rely on what they have right now. According to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, Houston will operate both Reed Sheppard and Amen Thompson for increased point guard responsibilities.

“With Fred VanVleet suffering a torn ACL and needing surgery, expect Reed Sheppard and Amen Thompson to see more playing time at point guard,” the NBA insider wrote on X. “The VanVleet injury is a significant blow to the Houston Rockets, who added Kevin Durant with the hope of competing for an NBA championship.”

With Fred VanVleet suffering a torn ACL and needing surgery, expect Reed Sheppard and Amen Thompson to see more playing time at point guard. The VanVleet injury is a significant blow to the Houston Rockets, who added Kevin Durant with the hope of competing for an NBA championship
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) September 22, 2025

VanVleet's unforeseen absence will serve as the biggest test for Sheppard. The last year's No. 3 overall pick didn't see much exposure from his rookie season, averaging just 4.4 points and 1.4 assists across 12.6 minutes in 52 games. But in the wake of the 31-year-old being sidelined indefinitely, he'll now carry a sudden huge responsibility of navigating the Rockets as their newest potential starting point guard.

As such, Thompson will receive an even more challenging burden. From defending the opposing team’s top perimeter player, the rising star will also be tasked to be more productive offensively and identify scoring opportunities as a ball handler. But by averaging a career-high 3.8 assists last year while having prior experience of playing at the point, Houston fans can only be optimistic of what he can bring to the table.

Losing VanVleet is definitely a gut-wrenching hit, but the Rockets have no choice but to go all-in and maintain their title aspirations. With two talented keys in Sheppard and Thompson on board, anything is still possible for the Rockets to achieve a desired take-off.