Rockets looking more vindicated by the day as former youngster remains stagnant

Up until this year, Cam Whitmore has been stuck toward the bottom of the Houston Rockets’ rotation, but when he was traded to the Washington Wizards this summer, it seemed as though his opportunities would increase. However, through the first portion of the year, he’s playing just as many minutes as he did during his final year in Houston.

The Wizards have been one of the worst teams in the NBA this season, sitting at just 2-16 on the year. It’s been brutal for them. Yet somehow, despite their terrible record, Whitmore still hasn’t been able to crack the rotation on a consistent basis.

At least, likely not in the way that he may want.

Cam Whitmore hasn't broken out in Washington

The most minutes per game Whitmore has played during his brief, three-year NBA career thus far were during his rookie season. He played 18.7 minutes per contest in his 47 appearances as a first-year player.

Last year, when the Rockets took a massive leap to being a top team in the Western Conference (finishing as the No. 2 seed in the conference), Whitmore’s minutes went down.

Perhaps Whitmore didn’t want to be traded to the Wizards, but it seemed as though he was always itching for more playing time during his time in Houston. Or at least, it seemed as though he could have earned some extra responsibilities as a scorer.

But since he’s gotten to Washington at the start of the year, his opportunities in the rotation have seemingly remained stagnant. Considering he jumped from a contending team to a sure-fire lottery squad, that’s a bit surprising.

So far this season, Whitmore has appeared in 17 games for the Wizards, starting none of them and playing just 16.8 minutes per game. Last year in Houston, he played 16.2.

And on top of that, Whitmore is taking fewer shots than ever this season. As a rookie in Houston, he took 9.9 per game. Last year, he got 7.9. And now, on the Wizards, he’s only getting 7.5 shots per game.

He is averaging 9.4 points and 2.6 rebounds while shooting 48.8% from the field and 34.9% from deep range on 2.5 three-point attempts per contest.

Usually, when young players move from one team to another (and particularly when they go from a good team to a bad one), they usually earn more playing time.

That hasn’t happened for Whitmore, which isn’t a great sign.