It’s getting harder and harder for Houston Rockets Head Coach Stephen Silas to do his daily press conferences as the only thing he can provide that is consistent is an injury update. The Rockets currently hold the longest NBA losing streak of 16 games this season and although the rookie head coach does not want anyone to have sympathy for him, it is hard not to knowing that he himself has to make decisions on the fly just to have an adequate number of players to even play a game.

Houston (11-26) was without the services of Christian Wood, John Wall, Eric Gordon, and Danuel House Jr. as they lost to the Boston Celtics (20-18) on Monday by a score of 134 – 107.

“There are no excuses,” Coach Silas said after the game on Monday. “This is the NBA. We got to be better regardless of who we have on the floor and all that stuff. The way we played in the Utah game and the way we played in the first quarter tonight…We just got to be better.”

With an expedited season, the Rockets won’t have time to make any significant changes as they have the Atlanta Hawks coming in with a five-game winning streak but has also been riddled with injuries as of late. The Hawks have been playing inspired basketball since they dismissed former head coach Lloyd Pierce before the All-Star break and are 3-0 under interim coach Nate McMillian.

Atlanta presents a problem for Houston with power forward John Collins dominating the paint and the dangerous outside threat of superstar Trae Young who is averaging 26.4 points and 9.2 assist per game. The combination makes it difficult for defenses to focus on stopping either one of them as they are able to go from a traditional style of play to an up-tempo pace with each possession.

The Rockets may have a couple of their young veterans return from injury on Tuesday in limited capacity. Center Christian Wood has been upgraded to doubtful and forward Danuel House Jr. has been ruled questionable.

“I am really close,” Wood responded when asked about how close he was to returning to game action. “There is a chance (of playing against the Hawks). I just have to see how I am feeling during shootarounds and warmups before the game. If I am good to go then I will tell coach and I will be ready to play.”

Former Rockets center Clint Capela is listed as questionable for Tuesday’s game with left heel pain. Capela is making his return to Houston for the first time since Houston traded him to Atlanta in February 2020 after playing nearly six seasons in a Rockets uniform.