Utah Jazz List Four Starters Out for Houston Rockets

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The Rockets are set to face off against the Utah Jazz tonight, needing to win a fifth-straight game to continue ascending the Western Conference standings.
They recently passed the Timberwolves, now sitting a full game ahead of Minnesota, having rattled off wins against the Grizzlies, Pelicans, Knicks and Bucks. They've been largely up-and-down to end the season, but have finally course-corrected.
For now, they sit at fifth in the West, but still have hope to climb back to third after grappling for it all season. A win against the Jazz would go a long way, especially as others like LA and Minnesota falter.
Here are the injury reports for both the Rockets and Jazz ahead of tonight’s game:
Houston Rockets injuries:
Steven Adams — Out: Left ankle surgery
Isaiah Crawford — Out: G League
Tristen Newton — Out: G League
Fred VanVleet — Out: Right knee ACL repair
Utah Jazz injuries:
Isaiah Collier — Out: Left hamstring strain
Keyonte George — Right hamstring strain
Elijah Harkless — Out: Left hamstring strain
Blake Hinson — Out: G League
Jaren Jackson Jr. — Out: Left knee injury recovery
Walker Kessler — Out: Left shoulder injury recovery
Lauri Markkanen — Out: Right hip impingement
Jusuf Nurkic — Out: Nose injury recovery
The Rockets see a fairly straight-forward injury report, listing two players out due to G League assignment in Isaiah Crawford and Tristen Newton, in addition to two mainstays in Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams.
Both VanVleet and Adams have been on the injury report for the majority of the season, with VanVleet having suffered an ACL injury in an offseason workout, and Adams going down with a season-ending ankle injury that required surgery in January.
They’ve both been massive hits to the starting lineup and general rotation, though the Rockets have known they’ve needed to adapt for months now.
The Jazz are on the other side of the injury spectrum, listing eight players in total, several of which are starters or rotational bets. Former All-Stars in Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. are both ruled out, in addition to Utah’s breakout scoring guard in Keyonte George, who's averaged 23.6 points per game on the season.
Additionally, the team’s starting center in Walker Kessler is out for the season following shoulder surgery, in addition to Jusuf Nurkic, Elijah Harkless and Blake Hinson.
The Rockets and Jazz tip off at 7 p.m. CT from Toyota Center in Houston, TX.

Derek Parker covers the National Basketball Association, and has brought On SI five seasons of coverage across several different teams. He graduated from the University of Central Oklahoma in 2020, and has experience working in print, video and radio.
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