Jalen Green Reported to Miss the Upcoming Houston Rockets Game Due to Injury.

When the Houston Rockets decided to trade away their franchise player at the time, James Harden, they knew they didn't want to bring in veterans in the trade and try to compete for just a play-in spot. The Rockets wanted to hit the reset button and build from the ground up.

That meant looking to the draft to add to the roster. Thats why the Rockets main focus in trading Harden was bringing in draft picks that could turn into lottery picks. The picks the Rockets received from the Brooklyn Nets did turn into a high lottery pick in 2021 as the Rockets went with high flying Jalen Green out of the G League United.

Green was one of the top-rated players in the entire country from the time he entered high school, and the Rockets were hoping they found their next superstar player. The Rockets were willing ot be patient with the young star as they valued player development over wins. The Rockets also struck gold again in that same draft when they traded for the 16th pick, which turned out to be Alperen Sengun.

The Rockets felt that with Sengun and Green, they had the young dynamic pairing that would eventually put them back into title contention. After a few seasons of rebuilding, the Rockets wanted to move on from player development and become more competitive. They brought in a new head coach, Ime Udoka, and a more veteran approach on the court, signing Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks. That led to immediate results, as the Rockets improved by a league-best 19 games, and Green continued to improve to the point where he was even getting All-Star consideration.

A big reason for the Rockets' improvement was Green's play in March and April, which helped end the 2023-24 season. After Sengun went down with a leg injury that ended his season, Green had the best month of his career, winning player of the week and coming close to player of the month. The Rockets came up just short of making the playoffs, but the following season, they cleared that hurdle, making the playoffs for the first time since the Harden era.

The Rockets finished as the second seed, and even though they were facing off against their long-time nemesis, the Golden State Warriors, they felt they were the better team. That isn't how the series went: the Rockets fell in seven games, and Green struggled for most of it, with only one breakout game.

That series loss led the Rockets to trade away Green for future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant. Green was understandably disappointed with the trade as he felt Houston was his home, but the Rockets felt this would put them over the top. Green made a point of saying he would have the Rockets game circled on his calendar for the upcoming season.

Jalen Green Has Not Played the Rockets Once This Season as He Has Dealt With Injuries All Season

It was a forgone conclusion that Green would be facing off against the Rockets in the Rockets and Suns first matchup of the season on November 24th in Phoenix. That wasn't the case however as Green suffered a hamstring injury during preseason that kept him out the first eight games. In fact Green has only played a total of 30 minutes all season dealing with the same hamstring issue.

Green missing games is significant because prior to this season Green had played in 186 straight games for the Rockets and was considered one of the few iron men in the NBA. The Rockets and Suns have already played two times this season and Green has missed both games.

It was a possibility that Green could be available for the next matchup with the Rockets on January 5th, but news came down on Monday that Green would miss at least the next two to three weeks as he continues to rehab his injury. That means he will miss the next Rockets and Suns matchup and have only one chance left in the regular season to face the Rockets at the end of the season on April 7th.

Green had waited all offseason for his opportunity to face his former team and show them they made a mistake by trading him away. Unfortunately, injuries have prevented that matchup, and we have to wait and see whether Green gets his chance this coming April.