During a recent episode of Unguarded, Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet shared an update on his recovery from a torn ACL.
While discussing his rehab process, VanVleet indicated that a return later this season hasn’t been completely ruled out.
“I’m about five, five and a half months, almost six months now. So, I’m getting there. I’m getting stronger. I’m getting better. I’m moving around a lot better. I’m getting some good on-court workouts. I think a lot of the predictions of where I was going to be were made pre-surgery, so we’ve had to adjust that timeline as things go on,” VanVleet said.
“But again, selfishly, I’m always going to keep my window open. I’m not going to come on here and tell you, ‘Oh, I’m not coming back,’ and then I come back like, ‘Oh, surprise.’ But I’m not ruling it out, and I’m not saying I’m coming back. I’m just rehabbing, I’m working on myself, and I keep that goal in mind because I’ve made such good progress.”
VanVleet suffered the ACL injury in his right knee during a workout in late September, shortly before the start of Rockets training camp. The expectation at the time was that the veteran point guard would miss the entire season.
However, neither the Rockets organization nor VanVleet himself has completely closed the door on the possibility of him returning before the season concludes.
Fred VanVleet Leaving Door Open To Play This Season https://t.co/SYRN1Wsv5P
— RealGM (@RealGM) March 14, 2026
