The Rockets added another big to the mix on Friday, signing free agent Oscar Tshiebwe, the team announced in a press release.
Houston did not disclose the terms of the deal, though the contract appears likely to be non-guaranteed based on the team’s cap and roster setup.
Tshiebwe is 26 and has already logged 49 regular season games between the Pacers and Jazz since going undrafted out of Kentucky in 2023. At 6-foot-8, he has spent time as a forward and center, averaging 7.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in 15.2 minutes per game across his NBA career. Last season with Utah, he posted 7.8 points and 6.6 rebounds in 27 games on a two-way contract.
His calling card has always been work on the glass. In the G League, Tshiebwe has piled up huge rebounding totals, averaging 17.3 rebounds and 15.4 points over 64 appearances for the Salt Lake City Stars over the past two seasons.
He also flashed that strength in a brief late-season run with the Jazz in the last two NBA regular season games of 2025/26. In those outings, Tshiebwe averaged 22.5 points and 19.5 rebounds in 30.0 minutes per game. That stretch included 22 total boards in 28 minutes against Memphis on April 10 and nine offensive rebounds against the Lakers on April 12.
Even with that kind of rebounding punch, Tshiebwe has not done enough in other parts of the game to lock down a steady NBA role so far. Whether Houston gives him a real shot at a roster spot remains to be seen, and the path could run through either a standard contract or a two-way deal. If he signed an Exhibit 10 contract, it could be converted into a two-way before opening night.
The move comes after Houston re-signed Isaiah Crawford and Jae’Sean Tate earlier this week. Entering Friday, the Rockets were sitting a little over the luxury tax line with 15 players on standard contracts.
If Crawford and Tate are on the regular season roster and Houston wants to move back under the tax, JD Davison and Tshiebwe would be the most likely players to be squeezed out. Still, the team could also stage a battle for the 14th roster spot during training camp and the preseason.
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