Sources told ESPN on Monday that Fred VanVleet, the top point guard for the Houston Rockets, may miss the entire 2025–26 season due to an ACL tear. According to Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports, VanVleet sustained the injury while participating in a team minicamp in the Bahamas. He will probably miss the most, if not all, of the 2025–26 season due to surgery that is scheduled for this week.
In his two seasons with Houston, VanVleet, a one-time All-Star and past NBA champion (2019 with the Toronto Raptors),
has led the Rockets’ transformation from lottery team to postseason contender.
In June, he agreed to a two-year, $50 million contract extension with the Rockets, which included a 2026–2027 player option.
VanVleet, who signed a three-year contract with the team in the summer of 2023, was a perfect fit right away, helping Houston go from from 22 victories to 41 in his debut season. The Rockets then ended a four-year postseason drought by winning 52 games last year to secure the number two seed in the Western Conference.
His 2024–25 season average of 14.1 points was his lowest since 2018–19, but he averaged 18.7 points per game during the playoffs. This past season, VanVleet was second on the team in 3-point attempts per game (7.7). He is a tough defender who thrives on offense by creating plays and scoring a lot of 3-pointers.
This injury is especially unfortunate, as the Rockets are lacking depth at the point guard position. Houston will probably need to elevate roles for players like Aaron Holiday or Jabari Smith Jr. and insert Reed Sheppard and Amen Thompson, two young, rising stars, into the starting lineup with VanVleet out. The Rockets don’t currently have enough salary space to sign a player, but they might be able to add a late-season addition in January.
What do you all make of this news? Is Houston still a title contender, or will Fred’s injury cost them their chances. What do you expect to see Houston do, and who can step up in the rotation? Let me know below, and as always Go Rockets!
