Rockets status updates: Kevin Porter Jr. questionable, TyTy Washington back with team

Rookie guard TyTy Washington is back with the Rockets after a stint with Houston’s NBA G League affiliate, and he could prove useful now that Kevin Porter Jr.’s status is in question.

Porter, Houston’s starting point guard, is listed as questionable for Thursday’s game in San Antonio due to right knee soreness. If he is unavailable, second-year guard Daishen Nix is currently the backup at that position and could see an elevated role against the Spurs.

However, should that occur, there’s currently no one behind him on the depth chart. Enter Washington, a rookie out of Kentucky who recently averaged 20.2 points (48.3% FG, 37.3% on 3-pointers) and 4.7 assists in 31.7 minutes with the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Vipers.

“He is back now,” head coach Stephen Silas said at Wednesday’s practice, as relayed by Coty M. Davis of Inside the Rockets. “And we will see if we can get him some minutes.”

“He has done a good job down there,” Silas said of Washington, who helped lead the Vipers to an 8-3 record. “He has made plays for himself, his teammates, and his defense has been good.”

Washington was drafted at No. 29 overall in the 2022 first round with a pick that was effectively acquired as part of a series of trades that sent last year’s starting center, Christian Wood, to Dallas.

#Rockets rookie TyTy Washington getting extra practice reps in with assistant coach John Lucas II.

Coach Stephen Silas on his return from the G League: “He is back now. And we will see if we can get him some minutes.” — Silas.

Read: https://t.co/fiBNRfGH0V pic.twitter.com/Ly5iuLl06r

— Coty M. Davis (@CotyDavis_24) December 7, 2022

Beyond Porter, reserve big man Bruno Fernando (non-COVID illness) and second-year guard Josh Christopher (left knee contusion) are also questionable for Thursday. Jae’Sean Tate remains sidelined indefinitely with right ankle soreness, as has been the case for weeks.

Tipoff between the Rockets (7-17) and Spurs (6-18) is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Central from the AT&T Center. Houston enters with four wins in its last seven games, and Porter is the team’s assists leader and second-leading scorer for the 2022-23 season to date.