Houston Rockets Upgrade Alperen Şengün To Questionable, Rule Out Reed Sheppard Against Dallas Mavericks
DALLAS — The Houston Rockets listed Alperen Şengün (low back soreness) and Marcus Smart (left forearm strain) as questionable for Friday’s game against the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center. Reed Sheppard is out with low back soreness. He was not on Houston’s injury report for Wednesday’s game in Milwaukee.
Steven Adams (right soleus strain) is also out. Two-way players Quadir Copeland and Julian Phillips are listed out on G League assignment.
Şengün sat out Wednesday’s 132-100 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, the first game he has missed this season. Houston also played without Adams and Smart at Fiserv Forum. The win moved the Rockets to 5-0 for the first time since the 2014-15 season. Clint Capela had 10 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks off the bench.
Alperen Şengün And Marcus Smart Listed As Questionable
Şengün played 37 minutes in Monday’s 120-110 win over the Atlanta Hawks and finished with 29 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists. Rockets coach Ime Udoka said on SportsTalk 790 that Şengün felt something early in that game and played through it, the Houston Chronicle reported. His lower back tightened up after the game. Imaging showed a minor strain.
Udoka said he hopes Şengün misses “a few games at most.” Through four games, Şengün is averaging 24.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 7.0 assists, and 1.8 steals. He leads Houston in scoring. In the Oct. 21 season opener against Dallas, he had 23 points and 10 rebounds on 9-of-15 shooting.
Smart has missed three straight games since he was a late addition to Houston’s injury report before Saturday’s game at Atlanta. He played in the opener against Dallas and in the Oct. 23 win over the San Antonio Spurs in Austin, averaging 7.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in those two games.
Against the Mavericks, Smart followed a Jabari Smith Jr. 3-pointer with one of his own to push Houston’s lead to 51-34 in the second quarter. Smith finished that game with 30 points.
Reed Sheppard And Steven Adams Ruled Out
Sheppard played 23 minutes Wednesday in Milwaukee. He finished with 7 points and 4 assists on 2-of-9 shooting, including 1-of-8 from 3-point range. Friday is the front end of a back-to-back for Houston, which hosts the Oklahoma City Thunder at 7:30 p.m. CT Saturday at Toyota Center.
In the opener against Dallas, Sheppard had 3 points in 16 minutes and bruised his left knee. The NBA’s official injury report listed a left knee contusion and bone bruise when he sat out the Oct. 23 game in Austin. He returned the following night in Atlanta as a starter and finished with 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists on 7-of-13 shooting. Sheppard made 5 3-pointers in that game. Last season, he appeared in all 82 games and averaged 13.5 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 3.4 assists.
Adams has played once this season, in the win over San Antonio. Houston said Sunday that he was expected to miss one to two weeks with the soleus strain. His 2025-26 season ended in January, when he underwent ankle surgery.
Copeland, an undrafted rookie out of NC State, signed a two-way contract with Houston in July. The Rockets converted Phillips’ training camp contract into a two-way deal before the regular season.
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. CT at American Airlines Center, in an NBA Cup group-stage game. Dallas enters at 3-2. Houston won the first meeting 128-110 on Oct. 21 at Toyota Center behind a 38-12 second quarter. Cooper Flagg scored 32 points on 10-of-17 shooting for Dallas in that loss.
