The Houston Rockets will enter the 2025-26 NBA season as one of the favorites to win the NBA Finals next June after an exciting summer. But they suffered a tough blow even before the start of training camp, as it has been revealed that starting point guard Fred VanVleet will likely be out for the entirety of the upcoming campaign.
Fred VanVleet Suffers ACL Tear; Are The Rockets In Trouble?
According to a report released by ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania on Monday afternoon, VanVleet has suffered a torn ACL. While it is early in the prognosis, it is safe to say that the Rockets point guard will be missing a significant portion of the 2025-26 season.
Just in: Houston Rockets' Fred VanVleet has suffered a torn ACL, sources tell ESPN. A devastating, potentially season-ending loss for the Rockets with their starting point guard and leader. pic.twitter.com/Qhf0V58DwR
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 22, 2025
It would take an abnormally quick healing period for the 31-year-old to make it back onto the court at any point, as the typical reovery time for an NBA player with the same injury is somewhere between 9 and 12 months.
It is a tough pill to swallow for the Rockets. After finishing with the second-best record in the Western Conference in 2024-25, they made perhaps the biggest move in the offseason to help their championship chances. Back in July, Houston struck a deal with the Phoenix Suns, which allowed them to acquire future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant.
Their championship odds immediately shot up, and they spent most of the past few months with one of the shortest title lines in the NBA. As of last week, the Rockets were listed at +700 to win it all, tied with the Denver Nuggets and behind only the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder.
Who Fills In For The Ball Handling Role?
Fred VanVleet has been one of the most consistent and productive players on the Rockets roster over the past two years. In 2024-25, he averaged 14.1 points and 5.6 assists per game, and showed up in big moments during Houston’s short stay in the playoffs. The team was looking forward to taking some of the strain of being the veteran leader off of VanVleet’s shoulders this season, and were hoping to get the most out of him back in a secondary role.
Devastating development for Houston.
So many teams hold mini-camps at the players’ behest ahead of training camp for team bonding and in hopes of getting off to the fastest possible start … only for the Rockets to lose VanVleet’s leadership to such a cruel injury. https://t.co/3YaxvSbVrf
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) September 22, 2025
There isn’t a clear option for who will take the starting spot vacated by Fred VanVleet. But it certainly means more ball handling reps for guys like Reed Sheppard and Amen Thompson, who will now be expected to expedite some of their development in order to help the Rockets achieve their goals this season.
