The Houston Rockets’ power forward Luis Scola has been one of the few consistent players down low for them all season long.  He is a strong player who is a solid defender and a great rebounder.  On the season, Scola is averaging 15.1 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 0.7 steals while playing only 30.9 minutes per game.  The Rockets have been having an up and down season, and with a record of 32-31 they will likely miss the playoffs in a stacked Western Conference.  You can’t put much blame on Scola though, as he has filled in great for a depleted Rockets’ frontcourt who have been without their star center Yao Ming all season (broken foot).  Scola has been playing very well lately, especially in his last seven games were he’s shooting 50% and is averaging 19.7 points, 12.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 0.9 steals.  The Rockets are 5 games out of the playoff picture, and with 19 games left they will need to put together a lot of wins if they want any chance of making the postseason.  Scola can definitely help the Rockets do that, but everyone else on the team needs to step up.

The Rockets have released 29-year old power forward Brian Cook. Cook played in 15 games (0 starts) for the Rockets this season and he averaged 2.9 minutes, 1.4 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. He played in 24 games (0 starts) in his two years with the Rockets and he averaged 2.9 minutes, 1.4 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. This is no loss to the Rockets at all.

With Kevin Martin on board that likely means that Shane Battier will be the new sixth man off the bench for the Rockets. He has played in 53 games (all starts) for the Rockets this season and he is averaging 33.0 minutes, 8.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Battier’s shot has been off this season as he is only hitting 39.8% from the floor this season. Still, his veteran leadership and defense should play well off the bench for the Rockets the rest of the year.

The Houston Rockets are a part of a three-team deal that also involves the New York Knicks and Sacramento Kings.  In this deal, the Rockets have finally rid themselves of the injury prone, prima donna that is Tracy McGrady.  T-Mac is going to the Knicks, while the Rockets get Jordan Hill and Jared Jeffries in return.  The Rockets also are getting a great player from the Kings in Kevin Martin, along with Hilton Armstrong.  The Rockets had to give up Joey Dorsey and, unfortunately, Carl Landry to the Kings.  The Kings also got Larry Hughes from the Knicks.  Landry was Houston’s top young player and is one of the best 6th men in the league.  This season he is shooting 55% from the field and is averaging 16.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 0.8 assists, and 0.9 blocks in just 27.2 minutes per game.

Although Landry will be missed, this was a good deal overall for the Rockets.  Kevin Martin is a star in this league, averaging 19.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.1 steal.  He has been struggling a little from the field this season (40% FG), but I expect that to improve since the Rockets are a much better team than the Kings and he is just staring to get into the flow of things since he was also injured for a much of the season with a broken wrist, playing in only 22 games thus far.  Another reason this was a good deal for the Rockets is that they also get the option of swapping draft picks with the Knicks in 2011 (unless it’s the #1 pick), and will get their 2012 first-round pick (unless it’s a top-5 pick).  So, that means the Rockets have gotten a great guard in Kevin Martin, more depth in the front court with Hilton Armstrong, Jared Jeffries, and Jordan Hill, all while having some young talent to look forward to in the 2011 and 2012 NBA drafts.

Tracy McGrady is finally back but the Rockets want him to take it slow while he wants his starting job back right now. McGrady has played in 6 games (0 starts) for the Rockets this season and he is averaging 7.7 minutes, 3.2 points, 0.8 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. The Rockets sent him back home before a recent road trip to New York and Cleveland. It seems as if the Rockets would love to trade McGrady but it’s going to be hard to do until he proves that he is healthy.