Away game against the Cavaliers! The Rockets injury list is released: 3 people are absent, and the main forward is doubtful.

On November 19th, at 8 o'clock tomorrow morning, the Rockets will go to Cleveland to challenge the Cavaliers. The Cavaliers' current record is 10 wins and 5 losses, and their winning rate has reached 66.7%. They currently rank second in the Eastern Conference, and are still 3 games behind the Pistons, who are first in the Eastern Conference.

Now the Cavaliers are in good shape. They have won two consecutive games. Center Mobley and shooting guard Mitchell have supported the team. Although their other All-Star guard Garland has been injured and has not played, the Cavaliers' performance this season is still stable. The strength of the Houston Rockets is about the same as that of the Cavaliers, but in this game, the Rockets can be said to be playing with a broken team.

Before the game, according to reports, three Rockets players were unable to play due to injuries. One is the Rockets' 31-year-old veteran VanVleet. He was injured in a training before the season, resulting in season reimbursement and will not play for the Rockets this season; the other is veteran Dorian Finney-Smith, who is still recovering from surgery. He has not played once for the Rockets from the preseason to the present. However, some news seems to indicate that Finney Smith may be back soon, but the 32-year-old shooter will still be absent in the next game against the Cavaliers.

In addition to the two veterans, Ethan, the Rockets' sixth man on the bench, is also absent from this game. In the previous game between the Rockets and Trail Blazers, Ethan strained his abdominal muscle and was sidelined for 4 to 6 weeks. The Rockets narrowly defeated the Magic in the previous game, and Ethan did not play. The overall strength of the Rockets' second team declined. Ethan is still unable to play in the next game against the Cavaliers. The Rockets' second team must have other players step up to maintain the level.

In addition to the absence of three players, the Rockets' main power forward Jabari Smith Jr. is also doubtful for the next game. According to the latest reports, Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. is doubtful for this game due to a knee injury. In other words, Smith's probability of playing is only about 50%. Smith Jr. has been the Rockets' starting power forward this season. He averages 14 points, 6 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.8 blocks per game. He is also one of the Rockets' best outside shooters. If he can't play, and Ethan is absent, the Rockets' forward strength will be greatly reduced.

Maybe coach Udoka has to give Tate and veteran Jeff Green more time to move up to the 4th position. In fact, the Rockets have another option, which is to use Amen Thompson as the power forward and put Shepard in the starting lineup. However, I believe that the Rockets will not change the lineup easily. After all, the Rockets' current starting lineup has been winning. Uduka will not take the initiative to adjust the lineup unless it is absolutely necessary.

The Rockets are currently troubled by injuries. It can only be said that the depth of the Rockets' lineup is actually good, and they can have more players enter the rotation. For example, in addition to Tate and Jeff Green, the Rockets' 29-year-old point guard Aaron Holiday got 16 minutes of playing time in the previous game. He scored two three-pointers and scored 10 points, becoming an important rotation of the Rockets' second team. In the next game, the Rockets need to give more substitute players playing time to make up for the losses caused by the absence of Ethan, Finney Smith or Smith Jr.