There's something uniquely demoralizing about an offseason injury. With Fred VanVleet tearing his ACL at a recent workout, the Houston Rockets will not even get to see the stellar roster they so carefully crafted this offseason play together. VanVleet will presumably be able to return for the 2026-27 season, for which he has a player option in his contract, but between his own injury and Kevin Durant's age, it's possible that he'll be rejoining a fairly different team. The version of the Rockets we expected to contend this season has practically been destroyed before ever taking the floor.

But that doesn't mean that a slightly different version of the Rockets can't compete. The one benefit to an injury like this happening in September instead of November is that it gives the Roc

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