Rockets Convert JD Davison's Two-Way Contract to Standard Deal

The Houston Rockets have had a point guard issue all season. They never bounced back from the Fred VanVleet injury from earlier in the season.

Well, from before the season even started, as the injury technically occurred during team minicamp, which technically took place before the preseason officially kicked off. Granted, the team was never built for an injury at that position.

Even before this season. In past years, VanVleet was essentially the only other point guard on the roster, and he played 35+ minutes on a nightly basis. Thus, he masked Houston's lack of depth at the position.

He was stellar at his role. Sure, there's a faction of the fanbase that wasn't necessarily blown away by his 14.1 points and 5.6 assists in 2024-25 or by his 37.8 percent from the field, 48.3 percent effective shooting and 51.5 percent true shooting.

But his value went far beyond the numbers. VanVleet galvanized the troops and was the perfect floor general, which goes beyond just table-setting. VanVleet helped get Rockets players the ball in their preferred spots.

And was great at calming the team down when it was needed. The Rockets' playmaking has taken a major hit, as well, as has their ballhandling.

Which made the discovery of JD Davison paramount. He's certainly not a VanVleet replacement, as they have different skillsets entirely.

But his presence helps make the game easier for Reed Sheppard, who has been Houston’s best option at the on-ball guard spot. With his sharpshooting ability, Sheppard benefits from having a guard capable of setting him up for easier scoring opportunities.

The Rockets have been limited Davison's action at the NBA level, because of the NBA's rules for two-way players, which limits them to 50 games. They realized rather early on that he's certainly not a G-League player.

He's far more capable than being buried on the Rio Grande Vipers. After all, Davison has already nabbed the MVP award in that league, averaging 25.1 points, 7.6 assists and 5.2 rebounds in 2024-25, as a member of the Maine Celtics -- the Boston Celtics G-League affiliate team.

On Tuesday, the Rockets put an end to Davison's two-way status, converting his deal and giving him a standard NBA deal. The move makes him eligible for the playoffs, where he could certainly be useful for a Rockets team with the aforementioned issues.

Davison's 50th and final game on the two-way deal took place during Sunday's 117-116 victory over the Golden State Warriors.