Houston Rockets: Tucker’s consecutive games streak could be in jeopardy

Houston Rockets forward P.J. Tucker sustained an injury in the first quarter of their contest against the T-Wolves. Is an important streak in jeopardy?

The Houston Rockets are near the pinnacle of the Western Conference with their 25-12 record.  Just a few days ago, they were flirting with 2nd place but they’ve now fallen to 5th with their recent loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The race is ultra-tight among four teams that are behind the conference-leading Los Angeles Lakers and will likely be that way for the remainder of the season as the West still features some of the most competitive talent currently in the NBA.

Although their record is quite impressive being well past the first third of the season, our minds will continue to focus on the tough loss that the Houston Rockets sustained against the Thunder this past Thursday night.

It was Russell Westbrook‘s homecoming, spoiled by a strong performance by Chris Paul, backed up by the tremendous support of the home crowd at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.  In what we thought would be a memorable game for the ages became one that will want to be forgotten as it’s thrown in the oblivion of bad games this team has partaken in this season.

But, as always, it’s on to the next one and the Houston Rockets are taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves to which, at the time of this writing, they have double-digit lead on their opponent.

It was unfortunate but P.J. Tucker had to bow out barely two minutes into the game with a right shoulder injury that has been categorized as a “stinger” — as per the AT&T SportsNet telecast — thus far.

Tucker was trying to fight through a pick set by Gorgui Dieng while trying to defend Andrew Wiggins and he got hit hard by Dieng causing him to tumble to the floor while grimacing in pain.  Dieng was called for offensive charging but the damage had been done, Tucker had eventually been ruled out for the rest of the game.

Having Tucker in the lineup is so important with his innate ability to defend, rebound and be ready in his spot in the corner to launch a three.

It’s actually a rarity for him to miss a game and he hasn’t done so in nearly two seasons but his

More from House of Houston

• Are you the 2021 FanSided Sports Fan of the Year?
• Houston Texans: 4 reasons Romeo Crennel is right coach right now
• Astros-Twins Wild Card Series: 5 things to know as MLB postseason begins
• Houston Texans: The Most Underrated Sports Drought Ever
• Houston Texans: J.J. Watt’s early case for NFL Hall of Fame

consecutive streak of 206 games could be in jeopardy if he’s not able to go against the Memphis Grizzlies on the road next Tuesday.

However, with two days of rest, there’s a good chance that the tough as nails Tucker will be ready to play early next week.

It’s tough to pry that man away from the action and I suspect that the Houston Rockets will rule him as day-to-day until they can get a handle of what’s going on.

It’s just didn’t look good seeing him on the floor wincing as he has been the ultimate warrior for the Houston Rockets.

Let’s hope for the best as he climbs his way back into health.

Tucker, 34, is averaging 8.4 points and 7.5 rebounds with a shooting line of .469/.373/.781 through 37 starts this season.  He’s currently shooting 43 percent from the corner and that constitutes 72.2 percent of his three-point attempts.