Can anyone replicate Aaron Holiday’s exceptional play as an unsung hero in 2024-25?
NBA teams hold 15 rosters spots and it’s with good reason. The truth is that each member on the team is most likely going to have their number called upon at some point. It may be due to injury, load management, garbage time, or even experimenting with new lineups, but the fact is each guy serves a purpose.
Last season, the Houston Rockets were required to look down at the end of the bench as they were in need of someone filling the backup point guard minutes in relief of Fred VanVleet. Kevin Porter Jr., the likely backup option, had been traded prior to the season because the team wanted to cut ties with him following his legal issues. Amen Thompson, the point guard of the future, found himself injured in just his fourth career game, and that prompted Ime Udoka to call upon seldom-used Aaron Holiday.
Holiday was a low-key signing that figured to add depth and fill-in where needed, but it’s hard to imagine that he was expected to become a fixture in the Rockets lineup. However, Holiday’s play during Thompson’s absence made it difficult to remove him from the rotation, so he went on to provide solid play for Houston in 78 games last year. Holiday wasn’t a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, but he was a pleasant surprise and someone that could be relied upon to bolster Udoka’s second unit.
Now the question is: who could possibly be that pleasant surprise in 2024-25?
My nomination for this year’s surprise is AJ Griffin. When the Rockets acquired Griffin this summer, it was an under-the-radar move. There wasn’t much fanfare or hype surrounding the move, but Rafael Stone made a good upside deal in my evaluation.
Griffin is the son of former player and coach, Adrian Griffin, and AJ himself is a former five-star recruit hailing out of Duke. At the very least, he has an NBA pedigree. It’s worth taking a shot on him considering he is still only 21 years old.
For whatever the reason may be, Griffin’s promising start to his career took a dive once Quin Snyder took over for the Atlanta Hawks. His minutes immediately dipped and it became even more apparent that his time in Atlanta was coming to an end once he started receiving DNPs and got sent to the G-League in 2023-24.
Griffin was due for a fresh start, and in Houston, it would be nice to see him get that fair shot. While the more tenured wing depth on the Rockets may take priority over Griffin, it’s foolish to think that some combination of injuries, rest, or lineup tinkering keeps him stapled to the bench like he was in Atlanta.
With an impressive skillset that includes plus off-ball shooting and a lengthy frame, Griffin is someone that fits right in Udoka’s wheelhouse. Recall that Udoka didn’t mind calling upon the elder Reggie Bullock during last season. One thinks that a younger version of that may have more to offer this time around.
Although Griffin’s shooting took a massive dip last year, it’s hard to consider that to be his norm considering he’s always been a good shooter outside of that year. It’s hard to blame the kid when it appears the coach ostracized him from the start. If Griffin can utilize his body and provide solid defense, Udoka could be forced to save minutes for him as he did for Holiday.
Acquiring Griffin is the type of move that I’m eager to see play out. If he hits, Stone is brilliant. If he doesn’t, then it was just a pick in the 40s. No harm, no foul.