Kevin Martin is off to a slow start for the Rockets who have him coming off the bench. I believe that Martin will pick his game up when the Rockets move him into the starting lineup. Martin has played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Rockets so far and he is averaging 30.0 minutes, 13.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game despite only shooting 28.6% from the floor for them. Jared Jeffries was sharp in his debut for the Rockets as he played 28 minutes off the bench in which he scored 11 points, grabbed 9 rebounds, dished out 2 assists and he had 1 steal and 1 blocked shot. He brings solid effort and defense to the Rockets bench. Hilton Armstrong and Jordan Hill have been watching the games from the bench so far for the Rockets. If the Rockets are going to snag one of those last playoff spots in the Western Conference they need these guys to step up.

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.

29-year old power forward Brian Cook has done almost nothing to help the Rockets this season. He has played in 14 games (0 starts) for the Rockets this season and he is averaging 2.7 minutes, 1.2 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. Cook is also shooting a lot of bricks whenever he comes into the game as he is only hitting 33.3% of his shots from the floor. Don’t expect Cook to help the Rockets at all the rest of the season.

Trevor Ariza is bending rims all around the NBA with his shooting. He is hitting only 37.8% from the floor, 30.3% from three point range and 64.5% from the free throw line this season for the Rockets and that is pathetic. As awful as Ariza has been shooting he is still putting up decent numbers somehow. He has played in 49 games (all starts) for the Rockets this season and he is averaging 38.1 minutes, 15.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.7 steals per game. It appears to me that Ariza is a little stretched out as a starting player because he’s hurting the team as much as he is helping it right now.

Shane Battier has the reputation of being a good defensive player and he is a pretty good shooter from the outside, but, the Rockets need more offense out of the small forward position. Battier has played in 33 games (all starts) for the Rockets so far this season and he is averaging 32.9 minutes, 8.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. The Rockets need Battier to start shooting more and Trevor Ariza to start shooting less if they are to continue to play well as a team.