Could Spencer Dinwiddie be a viable solution for the Houston Rockets?
Veteran Free Agent Point Guard “Would Love To Join” Western Conference Contender
Houston entered the 2025-26 campaign expecting to compete for an NBA championship. While the Rockets could still win the title, they have much work to do and things to figure out.
After opening the season with 13 wins in their first 17 game, the Rockets have been a little better than .500 since. Since December 1, the Rockets are just 15-12, though they have won six of their last eight. As a result, the Rockets sit fourth in the conference at 28-16. There is a real possibility that the Rockets can still earn the conference’s No. 2 seed just as much as they could fall to the No. 6 position.
Kevin Durant has been outstanding since joining the Rockets, and Amen Thompson has made another stride in his development. Alperen Sengun is one of the best two-way centers in the league, having an all-star type season. Meanwhile, Jabari Smith Jr. is having a career year, Reed Sheppard has shown significant improvement in year two, and Tari Eason is one of the NBA’s top wing defenders.
Houston is one of the top shooting teams in the NBA, ranking seventh in field goal percentage and seventh in 3-point percentage. But, despite leading the league in two-point makes and attempts, the Rockets are converting just 53.5% of those attempts — which is 22nd in the league.
While Thompson has done a fantastic job running the point in place of the injured Fred VanVleet, the Rockets don’t have a true facilitator. As a result, the Rockets are just 24th in assists (25 per game) and 26th in turnovers (15.6 per game).
© Erik Williams, Imagn Images
What The Rockets Need?
Houston’s biggest issue is that while the Rockets can score in transition and early offense, they get bogged down late in the shot clock. Since the Rockets are still a young team, they often rush shots late in the game, miss weak-side reads, and have defensive lapses after buckets. The Rockets are just 10-13 in clutch situations with a minus-0.7 scoring margin.
For those reasons, the Rockets are on the prowl for a veteran lead guard who thrives as a late-game organizer. This guard needs to be able to control tempo under pressure, limit turnovers, run half-court offense, and defend at the point of attack.
Could The Rockets Also Add Another Center?
Besides adding another point guard, the Rockets are mulling the possibility of adding another big man, either on the trade market or in the buyout market, per Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports. Steven Adams and Clint Capela have been backing up Sengun, but Adams– who has been out since January 19 with a Grade 3 ankle sprain — is out indefinitely. Adams is unlikely to return before April, though he may not play again this year.
Capela has seen his playing time increase slightly over the last four games, though the 31-year-old saw just seven minutes of action against Memphis last night. Capela has rebounded well and protected the rim effectively this season, but has struggled offensively. Dorian Finney-Smith saw time at the five behind Sengun versus the Grizzlies.
“Since Jan. 1, the team is just 7-6 with the 21st-ranked offense in the league, according to Cleaning the Glass, and has seen drops in its offensive rebounding rate in the week since Adams suffered a Grade 3 left ankle sprain,” Iko said in making his claim that the Rockets could use another big man. “The Rockets are an average half-court team in terms of points per possession, but now corral 31.5% of their own misses, 11th-best in the NBA.”
Will A Trade Take Place?
“It’s important to note Houston’s brass is merely pondering the idea right now,” Iko continued. “I’m sure Rockets fans are currently doing internal calculus concerning the more pressing need: center or guard depth. Because the Rockets are somewhat restricted financially, the most likely routes will come from inexpensive avenues.”
Houston has one open roster spot. But the Rockets are just $1.2 million from being hard-capped at the first apron.
However, coach Ime Udoka doesn’t believe that the Rockets will trade for a point guard, per ESPN’s Michael C. Wright.
“We’ve always been confident and talked about our depth and relying on all these guys with Aaron [Holiday] and Jae’Sean [Tate] and guys that aren’t playing as much,” Udoka said. “We want to see what [Thompson and Sheppard] look like with a year of point guard play under their belt and getting Fred back eventually. For now, we want those guys to grow into that role.”
What About Signing Free Agent Spencer Dinwiddie?
“I’d love to go to Rockets,” Dinwiddie said, appearing on Buckets Don’t Stop Podcast. “I’d love to go to Rockets. One of my best NBA friends, Dorian Finney-Smith, is on the Rockets. And I think the VanVleet injury really hurt them. I think they have all the makings of having that championship-type team. “They have young talent in Smith Jr. and Thompson. They got a great post-up threat and creator in Sengun. I think [I’m] a guard that can go in there, catch and shoot off of Sengun and KD, set the table in terms of just taking some of the thought process of, setting the table in terms of KD and Sengun just letting them score.”
Dinwiddie is an 11-year NBA veteran who last played for Dallas in 2024-25, where he played fairly well. The 32-year-old signed with German club Bayern Munich in October after being waived by the Charlotte Hornets in training camp. He averaged 12.1 points, 1.7 threes, and 3.1 assists in 17 games across all competitions for Bayern before leaving the team earlier this month. But he struggled with his shooting and turnovers in EuroLeague play.
Dinwiddie theoretically is the perfect fit for the Rockets. Dinwiddie, a low-maintenance player with tons of experience, is a capable game manager who has spent most of his career coming off the bench. Throughout his career, Dinwiddie has been very good at drawing fouls while not turning the ball over and improving as a three-point shooter.