Veteran NBA center Cody Zeller remains away from the Houston Rockets and is not expected to join the team between now and the end of the 2024-25 season, The Athletic's Kelly Iko and Sam Amick reported Monday.
However, it appears the plan for general manager Rafael Stone to keep Zeller on Houston's roster until at least the 2025 offseason.
The Athletic explains:
Earlier this month, Zeller was acquired by Houston in a deal completed at the league's in-season trade deadline for the 2024-25 campaign. To ease financial burdens on the Atlanta Hawks, the Rockets took on Zeller's contract and were compensated with a future second-round draft pick for doing so.
In 11 NBA seasons, Zeller has averaged 7.9 points (52.0% FG) and 5.7 rebounds in 20.9 minutes per game. Now 32 years old, the 6-foot-11 big man was drafted by Charlotte at No. 4 overall in the 2013 first round.
More: Rockets-Hawks trade: Houston acquires Cody Zeller, second-round draft pick