Rockets Pregame Notes on Tonight’s Matchup With Bulls
· Chicago’s win on 1/18 snapped a seven-game losing streak to Houston, which was its longest in the all-time series.
· Since losing two straight at home to the Bulls from 1/23-11/16/10, the Rockets have won six of the past seven meetings at Toyota Center.
· Eric Gordon had 21 points on 9-of-17 shooting at Chicago on 1/18 after scoring 9 points on 3-of-9 shooting in the only meeting last season.
· John Wall missed the first games against the Bulls on 1/18… in 23 career games vs. Chicago, he is averaging 19.0 points and 9.0 assists.
Rockets and Bulls Connections
· Rockets forward David Nwaba appeared in 70 games with 21 starts for Chicago in 2017-18 while averaging 7.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg and 1.5 apg.
· Bulls guard Garrett Temple briefly played for the Rockets during his rookie season in 2009-10… he was teammates with Rockets guard John Wall for four seasons with Washington from 2012-13 through 2015-16… Bulls forward Otto Porter Jr. was also on the Wizards for those final three seasons.
· Rockets guard Mason Jones was college teammates at Arkansas with Bulls forward Daniel Gafford in 2018-19.
Injury/Status Report
· For the Rockets: DeMarcus Cousins (Out – Right Heel Soreness); Danté Exum (Out – Right Calf Strain); KJ Martin (Assigned to G League); Kevin Porter Jr. (Assigned to G League); Victor Oladipo (Out – Right Foot Strain); P.J. Tucker (Probable – Left Quad Contusion); Christian Wood (Out – Right Ankle Sprain).
· For the Bulls: Devon Dotson (Assigned to G League); Chandler Hutchison (Out – Right Lower Leg Contusion); Lauri Markkanen (Out – Right Acromioclavicular Sprain); Adam Mokoka (Not With Team); Otto Porter Jr. (Out – Low Back Spasms).
Rockets News & Notes
· Houston has scored 110+ points in each of the past two games (116.0 ppg) after not doing so in any of the five games prior (98.8 ppg)… the Rockets are 6-5 when scoring 110+ points this season and 5-12 when scoring below.
· The Rockets only have a total of three fewer offensive rebounds than opponents over the past 16 games after averaging 3.1 fewer over the first 12 games of the season.
· Eric Gordon had 17 points at Philly on 2/17, marking his first time scoring below 20 points in his 10 starts this season… he has scored 20+ points in 14 of his 22 games played this season after doing so six times in 36 games played in 2019-20.
· Justin Patton is set to make his Rockets debut tonight after signing a two-way contract on 2/19… in 30 G League games last season, he averaged 12.1 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.8 blocks while shooting 52.8% from the floor.
