Rockets center Clint Capela was out on Wednesday with a virus, with the Rockets calling him day-to-day but unsure if he will be able to return in time to play Saturday against the Atlanta Hawks.
Tyson Chandler started against the Heat, but Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said he wanted to keep Chandler to four-minute stints before calling on a mix of using Isaiah Hartenstein as a backup center and going with small lineups against Miami’s range shooting.
The Rockets have had a different starting lineup in each of the past four games and had their preferred lineup in just three of the past eight games, changes forced by injuries to Capela and Danuel House Jr. before Capela’s illness. That has cut into depth already diminished with the injury to Eric Gordon after Gerald Green was lost for the season in the preseason.
Wednesday’s starting lineup – with Chandler, House, P.J. Tucker, James Harden and Russell Westbrook – was the Rockets' seventh in 17 games this season.
“It’s never good if you have people out,” D’Antoni said. “But it’s part of the game. You have to deal with it. Other guys get chances. Other people stepping up, you do know when you get a full roster back who can play and who can’t, who you can trust.”
Nearly as much as missing the contributions, especially with Capela getting at least 19 rebounds in seven consecutive games, the lineup changes could be impacting cohesion.
“Right now, we’re just learning how to play with double teams we haven’t seen in the past, trying to get that more efficient and better and get James used to it,” D’Antoni said. “Every game, you should learn something about how you’re playing and try to get it better.”
Tyson Chandler started against the Heat, but Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said he wanted to keep Chandler to four-minute stints before calling on a mix of using Isaiah Hartenstein as a backup center and going with small lineups against Miami’s range shooting.
The Rockets have had a different starting lineup in each of the past four games and had their preferred lineup in just three of the past eight games, changes forced by injuries to Capela and Danuel House Jr. before Capela’s illness. That has cut into depth already diminished with the injury to Eric Gordon after Gerald Green was lost for the season in the preseason.
Wednesday’s starting lineup – with Chandler, House, P.J. Tucker, James Harden and Russell Westbrook – was the Rockets' seventh in 17 games this season.
“It’s never good if you have people out,” D’Antoni said. “But it’s part of the game. You have to deal with it. Other guys get chances. Other people stepping up, you do know when you get a full roster back who can play and who can’t, who you can trust.”
Nearly as much as missing the contributions, especially with Capela getting at least 19 rebounds in seven consecutive games, the lineup changes could be impacting cohesion.
“Right now, we’re just learning how to play with double teams we haven’t seen in the past, trying to get that more efficient and better and get James used to it,” D’Antoni said. “Every game, you should learn something about how you’re playing and try to get it better.”
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