Houston Rockets star point guard Fred VanVleet has suffered a torn ACL and could miss the entirety of the 2025-26 season, sources told ESPN on Monday.
He suffered the injury at a recent offseason workout, sources told ESPN.
VanVleet, a one-time All-Star and former NBA champion (2019 with the Toronto Raptors), has helped spearhead the Rockets' turnaround from lottery team to playoff contender in his two seasons with Houston.
He signed a two-year, $50 million extension with the Rockets in June, with the deal including a player option in 2026-27.
An immediate fit after signing a three-year deal with the team in the summer of 2023, VanVleet helped Houston improve from 22 wins to 41 in his first year. The Rockets then won 52 games last season to grab the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, ending a four-year postseason drought.
He averaged 14.1 points in the 2024-25 season, his fewest in a season since 2018-19, but averaged 18.7 points per game in the playoffs.
This now places the focus at point guard on Reed Sheppard and Aaron Holiday, as well as the franchise's ascending two-way stalwart Amen Thompson. Barring a trade, Houston cannot fill their one open roster spot with a free agent because they are $1.25 million below the first apron, according to ESPN's Bobby Marks.
VanVleet is a hard-nosed defender who succeeds on offense through playmaking and volume 3-point shooting; he was second on the team in 3-point attempts per game this past season with 7.7. He tends to struggle with efficiency, however, and he shot below 40% from the field in 2024-25 for the fourth time in his career.
The nine-year veteran has averaged 14.9 points and 5.7 assists in his career.
ESPN Research contributed to this report.
