As starting center Clint Capela prepares to make his return from thumb surgery against the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday, the Houston Rockets have assigned reserve center Isaiah Hartenstein to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League. The team is preparing to make a playoff push, and Kenneth Faried will likely assume the role of first big off the bench, which would leave limited minutes, if any, for Hartenstein.
Hartenstein has played 19 games for the Vipers this season, averaging 18.8 points and 14.9 rebounds. The 30-plus minutes he sees each night will be more valuable to him than time spent with the Rockets for the time being.
Houston tends to leave Hartenstein with the Vipers in short spurts, calling him up when it needs extra size, or injuries necessitate another body. This is the 20-year-old’s seventh G League assignment of the 2018-19 NBA season.
