Rockets 2021 player recaps: D.J. Wilson

D.J. Wilson

Wilson came to the Houston Rockets back in March from the Milwaukee Bucks in the deal for P.J. Tucker and proceeded to play in 23 games for H-town. The 6’10” power forward finished the year with averages of 6.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1 assist per game on 41.6 percent shooting from the field and 33.9 percent from deep in 14.3 minutes per night.

He mostly came off the bench, snagging just one lone start in his time with the team, though he did have a few games where he stood out. On April 24, he had his best game in a Houston uniform, going for 25 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals in a loss to the Denver Nuggets. Then he followed that up a few nights later on April 29 with 15 points and 12 boards in a victory over his old team. He also had 3 blocked shots on April 9 versus the Los Angeles Clippers and had multiple nights with 2 blocks.

So there is some positive there for Wilson, with the 25-year-old finishing his stint with the Rockets with his highest scoring average of his career and showing moments of promise.

He signed a multi-year deal with the Bucks back in 2017, and he was paid a career-best $4.5 million this past season, which is definitely too high for a player of his pedigree, and the contract is now up, making him an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

Whether he returns to Houston or not is still to be determined, as he’s one of a cadre of young guys the team tried out in the back half of the season to see if their might be a long-term fit, but I’d recommend bringing him back at a substantially reduced rate more in line with his production now that he’s off his rookie scale deal.