The Houston Rockets have been without starting point guard Fred VanVleet this season as he recovers from an ACL tear. While Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard have stepped into his role in a surprisingly sustainable manner, his absence still highlights the one major question that remains for this team.
As they chase championship contention, will his absence still be recognizable in close games?
On a recent episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, Zach Lowe expressed concerns on the matter, stating that the Rockets' need for an extra on-ball creator is still evident:
""VanVleet in particular, you feel the void of a little extra on-ball juice for them at times.