Rockets' role player could make a shocking impact on the team with VanVleet's injury

As the Houston Rockets attempt to address their devastating loss of starting point guard Fred VanVleet this season, head coach Ime Udoka has stated that the team will utilize a committee approach in attempting to fill the void.

Therefore, while Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard will likely get the first crack at taking on the majority of the resultant workload, Aaron Holiday, who is entering his third season with Houston, could also be a sneaky candidate to make a major impact on the rotation this year.

Holiday, 29, has now been the team's backup point guard for two seasons, and, although he is likely not ready to take a step into starting-caliber range for many teams, the desperateness of the Rockets situation could lead them to lean on Holiday more than they usually would.

Aaron Holiday could be poised to take on a huge role for the Rockets this season

Last season, through 62 games with Houston, Holiday cemented himself as even more of a dependable presence off the bench for the team, averaging 5.5 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists in just 12.8 minutes per game.

While, with VanVleet still in the lineup, it is quite possible that Holiday would have been leapfrogged by Sheppard this season in terms of minutes, it is now a real possibility that Holiday works his way into the favor of Udoka given the team's need for veteran experience in their backcourt.

Earlier in the team's training camp process, Udoka revealed that he plans to utilize the whole of the team's resources to fill the void VanVleet has left behind, saying, ""It'll be a committee... Amen [Thompson], Reed [Sheppard], those guys were going to play a lot more, initiate a lot more, handle the ball a lot more anyway. That'll be expedited a bit."

While Holiday is not specifically named in this quote, one has to imagine that, especially if Thompson and Sheppard do not pan out immediately as primary ball-handlers, the team will lean on Holiday to remove some of that uncertainty from the offense.

Throughout his career, Holiday has averaged 4.4 assists per 36 minutes he has been on the court. While this is certainly not an elite number, especially given the fact that it is adjusted for disparities in time on the court, it signifies at the very least a fundamental understanding of how to make the right passes.

While Thompson and Sheppard both have the ability to be gifted ball-handlers, there is the chance that they would be much better-suited honing in other aspects of their game. At least with Holiday, the team knows what it will be getting, and, while he can be turnover-prone at times, he is also a player that can be trusted to plug and play into whatever system or line-up the team is running.

Therefore, while it is certainly not the most ideal option, Holiday could be poised to play a much larger role for Houston this season, and his name should not be ignored in conversations centering around Thompson and Sheppard.