The Houston Rockets are not a very deep basketball team and there were minutes to be had if the rookies were good enough to earn them, but they didn’t.  Point guard Vassilus Spanoulis played in 31 games this season and he averaged 8.8 minutes, 2.7 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  He also shot a horrible 31.7% from the floor.  Forward Steve Novak played in 35 games for the Rockets this season and he averaged 5.4 minutes, 1.5 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.  He also shot poorly as he only made 36% of his shots from the floor.  These guys might both have a hard time making the Rockets next season.

The Rockets finished the season in 3rd place in the Southwest Division with a 52-30 record, 15 games behind the Dallas Mavericks.  The Rockets were a very solid 28-13 at home and they were 24-17 on the road.  They were 28-24 against the Western Conference and 8-8 against their Division foes.  The Rockets have averaged 97.0 points per game and allowed only 92.1 points per game.  They won 6 of their last 10 games of the season.

Starters Shane Battier and Rafer Alston need to get back on track after a slow start to April.  In six games this April, Battier is averaging 7.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game and he’s only shot 31.9% from the floor.  Alston is averaging 13.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game in April, but he’s only shooting 34.7% from the floor.  Juwan Howard is the 6th man on the Rockets and he’s also having a poor month.  He’s only averaging 7.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game and he’s only shooting 37.2% from the floor.  If the Rockets want to beat the Utah Jazz in the first round of the playoffs, all three of these guys need to get their act together….and soon!

Bonzi Wells has left the Rockets indefinately due to personal problems.  This couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Rockets as the playoffs start in less than two weeks.  The Rockets bench isn’t very deep and they will need Wells veteran presence and experience in the playoffs.  Wells has played in 28 games this season and he’s averaged 21.1 minutes, 7.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.

Chuck Hayes has started 6 of the last 7 games for the Rockets and he’s been giving them quality minutes.  Over those 7 games, Hayes has averaged 6.9 points, 10.0 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 1.9 steals per game.  Hayes shot also shot 59% from the floor over those 7 games.  If Hayes stays in the starting lineup and continues to rebound and play good defense the Rockets are going to be hard for teams to deal with come playoff time.