Rockets waive Justin Patton, sign Armoni Brooks on two-way contract

After waiving Ben McLemore early Saturday, GM Rafael Stone chose to stay busy on Saturday.

According to Kelly Iko of The Athletic, the Rockets are waiving center Justin Patton from his two-way contract and signing G-League bubble sharpshooter Armoni Brooks in his place.

Patton joined the Rockets in mid-February following an avalanche of injuries amongst the Rockets centers and gave the team a much-needed jolt of size.

However, following the return of Christian Wood and the acquisitions of bigs Kelly Olynyk and D.J. Wilson, Patton’s minutes began to dwindle until he fell out of Stephen Silas’s rotation.

In 13 games with the Rockets, Patton averaged 5.4 points per game and grabbed 3.8 rebounds per game.

The replacement for Patton’s spot on the roster is former Houston Cougars star Armoni Brooks.

Brooks went undrafted in the 2019 NBA Draft after three years with the Cougars, where he averaged 9.4 points per game and shot nearly 40% from distance.

He joined the Rockets’ G-League affiliate in the Orlando bubble this season after spending his first G-League campaign with the College Park Skyhawks.

In 15 games with the Vipers this year, Brooks averaged 16.8 points per game while shooting 37.5% from the three-point line.

For a team that could use an injection of youth and distance shooting, adding Brooks is a great opportunity for both the Rockets and Brooks, who will likely get some playing time down the stretch for a Rockets team that isn’t playing for anything substantial for the rest of the year.