Kevin Durant given Phoenix flashbacks after Fred VanVleet news

The Houston Rockets acquired Kevin Durant to get buckets. With Fred VanVleet's injury, it looks like they may need playmaking from him as well.

That is suboptimal. Before the injury, every player on the roster had a well-defined role. VanVleet's was pivotal - he was to be the team's organizer. VanVleet was responsible for setting up the offense and getting his teammates involved.

Now, he won't be around. So, every Rocket has to step up their playmaking to some extent. That includes Durant:

And it's giving him flashbacks to his time with the Suns.

Rockets' Kevin Durant lands in familiar territory

In Phoenix, the absence of playmaking was by design.

The team already had Devin Booker. In pairing him with Durant, they were doubling down on score-first stars. That's fine:

But it made the acquisition of Bradley Beal somewhat confusing.

The rest is history. The Suns fell well short of expectations during Durant's two-year tenure with the team. That's why he's currently on the Rockets. Now, he's heading into another season without a starting-caliber traditional point guard on his roster. It's a case of Deja Vu:

Almost.

Rockets have playmakers at multiple positions

VanVleet is a major blow. There isn't enough sugar in all of Brazil to coat that reality well enough to make it easy to swallow.

Still, these Rockets are not quite those Suns, either. Durant didn't have a playmaking 5 like Alperen Sengun at his disposal in The Valley. Sengun won't bring the ball up the floor, but his passing vision will help him feed Durant.

It's easy to forget, but Amen Thompson was drafted to be a point guard. He's looked like the future best defensive wing in the NBA instead. He can step up and provide some more ball-handling and playmaking in 2025-26.

Still, Durant may need to adjust his approach. The Rockets will need a bit more playmaking from him.

Can he give it to them?

Kevin Durant must make plays for the Rockets

Time will tell.

Since 2012-13, Durant's assists per game have fluctuated between 4 and 6 with almost zero exception. That's perfectly fine. Durant is one of the most efficient scorers in NBA history. He's a highly intelligent player - it just so happens that shooting the ball is regularly the right decision for him.

If he could get those assists closer to 6 in 2025-26, it'll offset the loss of VanVleet some. Durant doesn't need to overhaul his mindset heading into 2025-26. He was acquired to lead this team in scoring:

But now, he might have to do just a little more.