Steven Adams was cleared on the Rockets' injury report Saturday, moving off the day-to-day tag he had carried since Oct. 11. He is available for Houston's next game, against the Mavericks on Wednesday.
What happened
The Rockets' injury report listed Steven Adams as cleared as of Saturday, Oct. 17 at 2:35 p.m. ET, moving him off the day-to-day tag he had carried since Sunday, Oct. 11, when he was listed day-to-day for rest. The report does not give an injury detail or a comment on the change. The 33-year-old center had already cycled through day-to-day and cleared designations earlier this fall, including a left ankle and leg issue reported Sept. 6 and a day-to-day listing on Sept. 29 before he was cleared that same day.
What it means for the Rockets
Adams' clearance comes ahead of Houston's next game, Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 8:30 p.m. ET against the Mavericks. Last season he averaged 5.8 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 22.8 minutes across 32 games. In games without him, Houston leaned on Alperen Sengun (33.3 minutes, 20.4 points), Jabari Smith Jr. (35.1 minutes, 15.8 points), Amen Thompson (37.4 minutes, 18.3 points) and Kevin Durant (36.4 minutes, 26.0 points). The Rockets have not played a regular-season game yet and sit at 0-0.
What to watch
The next injury report will show whether Adams' clearance holds through the Mavericks game on Oct. 21. No expected return timeline has been announced beyond the clearance itself, since he is no longer listed as day-to-day. His workload against Dallas in that opener will be the first look at his role to start the 2026-27 season.
Is Steven Adams playing vs Mavericks?
Adams was cleared from day-to-day on Saturday, Oct. 17, with no new status listed before the Rockets host the Mavericks on Wednesday, Oct. 21.
When will Steven Adams be back?
He is already cleared. No further return timeline has been announced.