Rockets guard Eric Gordon likely out at least a month with groin strain

Veteran guard Eric Gordon is likely to miss the next four-to-six weeks for the Houston Rockets due to a moderate strain of his right groin, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. An MRI was performed Friday after Gordon suffered the injury in Thursday night’s loss at Sacramento.

It’s the latest in a long line of significant injuries for the Rockets, who have been without star center Christian Wood (right ankle sprain) for more than a month and are now missing five-time All-Star John Wall due to a left knee contusion. Wall’s return timetable is not yet known.

Gordon is averaging 17.8 points in 29.2 minutes per game this season, which makes him one of Houston’s top four scorers. After missing much of the 2019-20 regular season with a knee injury, Gordon has looked much more athletic and spry when attacking the basket in 2020-21, shooting a career-high 57.3% on two-pointers. Thus, a significant injury to his groin muscle is a very unfortunate setback.

In the interim, Gordon’s absence is likely to mean more available minutes for backcourt reserves such as Kevin Porter Jr., Ben McLemore, Sterling Brown, and Mason Jones.

For the Rockets (11-24), who have now lost 14 straight games, Gordon’s injury could have bigger implications beyond just the coming days. At 32 years old, Gordon isn’t necessarily an ideal fit for a team that appears to be heading down a rebuilding path. To that point, Wojnarowski had recently reported that numerous other NBA teams were interested in a potential trade for Gordon before the March 25 deadline.

Yet, the sudden health concerns could impact Gordon’s market and potentially force the Rockets to table any serious talks until the offseason. The four-to-six weeks timetable would have Gordon returning in mid-to-late April, which is very late in the 2020-21 regular season.

“Gordon was an interesting target for several teams ahead of the March 25 trade deadline, but the injury largely assures Gordon will finish the season with Houston,” Woj tweeted on Friday.

With the Rockets having the Western Conference’s second-worst record and without any realistic hope of making the 2021 playoffs, expect them to be very cautious with Gordon’s recovery. He won’t be rushed back.

Related

Rockets lose Eric Gordon to groin injury in Sacramento

Woj: Rockets guard Eric Gordon picking up significant trade interest