The Houston Rockets had to sift through a ton of failed draft picks, unsuccessful development projects, and young players who didn't pan out over the last few years. Before building the core of the championship contender with home run picks of Alperen Şengün, Amen Thompson, Tari Eason, and Jabari Smith Jr., the Rockets had a ton of swings and misses.
This includes the 2021 NBA Draft that landed Şengün in Houston with the 16th-overall pick. That same draft also had the Rockets select Jalen Green with the second-overall pick, Usman Garuba with the 23rd-overall and Josh Christopher with the 24th-overall pick. While Green and his contract helped trade for Kevin Durant this offseason, the latter two picks have been major busts throughout their NBA career.
Josh Christopher Remains Unsigned in Free Agency
Garuba has already taken his talents to Europe, spending last season with Real Madrid. Christopher, however, continues to try his luck in the NBA despite struggling to establish his career. In fact, the 23-year-old remains unsigned after hitting free agency this summer.
Christopher was a five-star recruit out of high school, ranked as one of the best shooting guards in the country before committing to Arizona State. He only played 15 games in his lone collegiate season due to injuries and averaged 14.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game. This was good enough to make him a first-round pick, but Christopher didn't live up to the expectations despite getting plenty of chances in Houston.
Before the Rockets traded him to the Grizzlies in the 2023 offseason in the deal that landed them Dillon Brooks, Christopher appeared in 138 games in Houston, averaging 6.9 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 15.4 minutes per game. Shooting 27.7% from three, and the turnover problems were his downfall, pushing him down to the G League before signing a two-way contract with the Miami Heat in the summer of 2024.
He didn't get much of a chance with the Heat, either, appearing in 14 games last season. Christopher will likely need to sign another two-way deal, spend more time in the G League, or sign an overseas deal to earn another NBA deal, so it may be a while before Rockets fans see him back in the league.