HOUSTON -- Few teams were playing better than the Houston Rockets heading into the All-Star break. That all changed once Bob Sura went down with a back injury.
Sura missed consecutive losses to Seattle and San Antonio that ended Houston's eight-game winning streak, and the Rockets learned soon after that their starting point guard wouldn't be able to play for at least another 10 days.
Left only with a weary 18-year veteran and undrafted rookie at the position, Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson realized it was time to tinker again with his roster before the NBA's trade deadline on Thursday.
"We needed to do something," Dawson said. "Sura was having a great year. He means a lot to the team."
So the Rockets acquired point guard Mike James in a trade with the Milwaukee Bucks for seldom-used Reece Gaines and a pair of second-round picks. Houston also sent forward Maurice Taylor to the Knicks for guard Moochie Norris, forward Vin Baker and a second-round pick in 2006.
Stuck in sixth place with a 32-23 record in the Western Conference, the Rockets can only hope that James brings them the same kind of luck he brought the Detroit Pistons last season. James went to Detroit in a midseason trade and was in the Pistons' rotation throughout their run to the NBA title.
"I see the same qualities here that I saw in Detroit," James said. "That can happen here."
The acquisition of James is actually the culmination of a prolonged effort to get him in Houston. The Rockets tried to woo him last summer when he was a free agent and nearly pulled off a trade for him in December.
James was averaging 11.4 points, 3.9 assists and 2.6 rebounds with the Bucks this season, and he proved to be an efficient scorer, making 44.6 percent of his shots and 38 percent from the 3-point line.
With only rookie Andre Barrett and Norris on the roster until Sura comes off the injury list, Houston will immediately plug James into the starting lineup for Sunday's game against Utah. The Rockets waived veteran Rod Strickland on Thursday, a day after his unproductive start against San Antonio.
"We're just going to throw him in and we need to make it work," coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "He's been coached well along the way. We feel fortunate that we were able to get him."
Despite an offseason trade with Orlando that paired Tracy McGrady with center Yao Ming, the Rockets have continually massaged their roster since getting off to a disappointing 12-14 start.
The Rockets made trades for David Wesley (New Orleans) and guard Jon Barry (Atlanta) in late December that gave the Rockets a much-needed boost of offense, toughness and veteran moxie. Since trading for Wesley on Dec. 29, the Rockets have tied the Spurs with an NBA-best 19 wins over that stretch.
Sura's injury slowed down some of that momentum, but the Rockets are hoping the addition of James can keep them rolling into the final two months of the season.
"It just adds another weapon," said McGrady, who ranks seventh in the league in scoring with 25.3 points a game. "He's going to make things a lot easier for us."
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