Fischer’s Latest: Horst, Bucks, Jenkins, Blazers, Bulls
The Bucks endured a disappointing and drama-filled season in 2025/26, going just 32-50 amid injuries to — and trade rumors involving — Giannis Antetokounmpo. Head coach Doc Rivers officially stepped down from his role on Monday and suggested in a subsequent podcast appearance that his NBA coaching days may be over.
Could general manager Jon Horst be the next key member of the organization on the move? According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link), the early signs in Milwaukee indicate the answer to that question is no.
There had been speculation around the league about Horst’s job status, but his contract runs through 2027/28 and he has initiated contact with several agents as the Bucks commence their search for Rivers’ replacement, sources tell Fischer.
As Fischer writes, Horst hasn’t really spearheaded a coaching search since 2018, when the team hired Mike Budenholzer. Adrian Griffin, who went 30-13 in ’23/24 before being replaced by Rivers, was believed to be the favored choice of Antetokounmpo, while Rivers was hand-picked by ownership.
Fischer reiterates that ex-Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins and Bucks top assistant Darvin Ham are among the candidates for the position, but Horst appears to be casting a wide net in his search, with several other names in play as well.
On the other end of the search, candidates for the job likely won’t have a great feel for what Milwaukee’s roster will look like next season until at least this summer, Fischer notes, since Antetokounmpo’s situation remains unresolved.
Here’s more from Fischer’s latest rumor round-up:
- Jenkins, who was fired by Memphis near the end of the ’24/25 regular season, may be the “hottest name” on the coaching market, Fischer writes. There has been speculation the Wizards could be interested in Jenkins, but Washington’s front office recently said Brian Keefe is expected to remain in his role next season. Sources tell Fischer the Wizards want to give Keefe a chance to lead a team trying to win after Washington prioritized draft positioning in his first two-and-a-half years at the helm. The Magic are believed to be fans of Jenkins too, though the team still has Jamahl Mosley under contract.
- According to Fischer, part of the reason the Kings decided to retain Doug Christie is because Sacramento doesn’t project to be a playoff team next season and the former NBA guard has one year left on his contract. Given the current state of the team, paying two coaches doesn’t make much sense, Fischer writes.
- While Tiago Splitter has seemingly done as well as anyone could have hoped in Portland after Chauncey Billups was arrested and placed on leave as part of an illegal gambling probe, the Trail Blazers may be leaning in a different direction as they look to hire the first head coach under new majority owner Tom Dundon. According to Fischer, that’s not a reflection on Splitter’s performance as Portland’s interim replacement but rather Dundon’s reticence to pay the going rate for an NBA head coach. Fischer hears it has been “widely communicated” for weeks that Dundon is evidently looking to spend a maximum of $1.5MM per year on a new head coach, which is more in line with what top assistant coaches make. It’s also far less money than high-level college head coaches earn, Fischer continues, which is why some people believe an NBA assistant is more likely to accept the job unless a deal can be reached with Splitter. Fischer hears the Blazers have held exploratory talks with 20 college and international coaches about the position.
- The Bulls have hired the firm TurnkeyZRG to lead the search process for their new head of basketball operations, Fischer reports, but head coach Billy Donovan is also expected to have a “strong voice” in the search, assuming he stays in his current role. The Mavericks, meanwhile, decided not to use a search firm, with governor Patrick Dumont leading that process, Fischer adds.
Mavs Notes: Kidd, Front Office, Bilsborough, Flagg
The situation that Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd finds himself in isn’t all that different from Billy Donovan‘s in Chicago. It was a disappointing season in Dallas and the team is embarking on a search for a permanent head of basketball operations, but all indications are that the team wants Kidd to remain part of the organization.
“He knows the game,” governor Patrick Dumont said when asked by Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required) to evaluate Kidd’s performance in 2025/26. “And he’s had great coaching success, and this was a tough year. I look back to last season, the injury that Kyrie (Irving) had, some of the other injuries we had, and how hard the guys played for Coach. This year, same thing. We played a lot of close games that could have gone either way. The team continued to battle through adversity and through a lot of injuries. And look, that’s really a testament to Coach Kidd and the rest of the coaching staff.”
As Townsend observes, there have been rumblings over the course of the season about Kidd possibility transitioning into a front office role in Dallas, but those whispers have mostly died down as of late. A report two weeks ago suggested that Kidd is more likely to remain in his current position than to become a basketball operations executive. Either scenario seems more likely than the Hall-of-Famer being let go, given how highly regarded he is by Mavs ownership.
“He’s an important voice in our organization,” Dumont said. “I really value his insights and his knowledge of the game. I know the rest of our team does as well. He’s just been unbelievably committed to our franchise, both as a player and as a coach over these many years.”
We have more on the Mavericks:
- In a story examining potential candidates for the Mavericks’ top front office job, Christian Clark of The Athletic shares some interesting tidbits, citing multiple league sources who told him that Mark Cuban‘s support for Dennis Lindsey could negatively impact Lindsey’s chances of being rehired by Dallas. Clark also confirms that the Mavs have legitimate interest in Tim Connelly, though he may not be inclined to leave his job with the Timberwolves, and reports that Dumont believes the current front office – led by co-interim GMs Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi – did well in February’s Anthony Davis trade.
- The Mavs are making changes in their health and performance department for a fourth straight year, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN, who says the team has dismissed director of health and performance Johann Bilsborough. MacMahon reported last spring that there was tension between Bilsborough and former athletic performance director Keith Belton, who was fired by the team during the 2025 offseason. The expectation, per MacMahon, is that the new head of basketball operations will hire Bilsborough’s replacement.
- After repeatedly making Cooper Flagg‘s case for Rookie of the Year in recent weeks, Kidd suggested at the end of the season that the 19-year-old forward wasn’t just the NBA’s best rookie in 2025/26 — he proved he’s already among the league’s very best players. “We’ve seen a historic rookie season,” Kidd said, according to Clark. “We have the best fans. But we also have one of the best players — present at the age of 19, and the future.”
- Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com looks at why there’s confidence among Mavs players and coaches that the team’s 26-56 season was a blip on the radar and that better things are ahead for the franchise, starting in 2026/27.
Patrick Dumont Discusses State Of Mavericks
Patrick Dumont has experienced the extreme highs and lows of NBA ownership in his 27 months as governor of the Mavericks, from a trip to the NBA Finals to the drama surrounding former president Nico Harrison after his controversial decision to trade Luka Doncic.
As Brad Townsend writes for the Dallas Morning News in an exclusive sit-down with the team owner, Dumont recognizes that until he puts together a competitive, high-level team again, everything he does will be looked at through the lens of the Doncic trade.
“I believe in our accountability,” Dumont said. “We have to work hard to make things right.”
Lucking into budding star Cooper Flagg in last year’s draft lottery helps, but as Dallas wraps up its worst season since 2017/18, the real work is only just beginning. That process will start with the search for a new president of basketball operations.
“Monday morning, we’re going to get active, and we’re going to talk to a lot of people,” Dumont says. “And we’re going to do our best to make sure that we find the best possible candidate to lead our basketball organization… Our goal is to have someone on board by the middle of May.”
It has previously been rumored that Dumont wants to go big-game hunting in his search, with names like Brad Stevens and Sam Presti coming up, but as heads of successful teams, those two seem unlikely to be attainable.
“We’ll do the work,” he said. “We’ll figure out who’s a great leader. Who can build a great culture. Who has a track record. Who knows how to work with young players and develop them, which is crucial, because if you look at our team right now, we’re going to have a pool of great young talent, led by Cooper Flagg.”
Dumont also spoke about former majority owner Mark Cuban, who made news recently when he expressed regret for selling the team to the new owners, as well as when he addressed rumors of his involvement with an investor group trying to buy the team away from the Adelson-Dumont family.
“Mark is really passionate about the Mavericks, and I think that’s great,” Dumont said. “I think he’s really, really frustrated about the year that the team has had. And I understand that frustration. I consider Mark a friend. And look, I always appreciate his thoughts… But one thing I do want to say, in terms of ownership, I think we’ve been really clear: We’re not moving the team to another city. The team is not for sale. We’re going to continue to invest in this franchise. We’re going to build a new home for the team, and hopefully in the long term we’ll be able to celebrate that success for many years.”
Regarding that last point, one issue hanging over Dumont is the decision on where to locate the new arena. He and the team are weighing several locations, including the site that is currently Dallas’ City Hall. The Mavs governor says he envisions it as something beyond just a simple arena, as well as a place that can help give back to the city.
“I think it’s great for the city of Dallas to have a sports and entertainment center where there’s activations, not only when we have our home games, but all throughout the year,” Dumont says. “And I also think it creates a better experience for our fans to be able to have things to do before and after the game, where they can meet family and friends.”
He declined to specify whether most of the money to build such a complex would come from the team or the city, but he noted that some level of private funding would be involved in the project.
Mavericks Targeting Big Names In Front Office Search
Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont has some big names on his wish list as the team seeks a new head of basketball operations, according to reports from Chris Mannix of SI.com and Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Substack link).
Mannix and Stein both identify Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and Thunder executive VP of basketball operations Sam Presti as targets for Dallas, while Mannix also mentions Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman and Stein adds Spurs CEO R.C. Buford to the list.
However, Mannix describes some of those options as “fanciful,” while Stein agrees, suggesting the Mavericks know they probably don’t have a realistic shot at executives like Stevens and Presti, who have recently won championships with their respective teams. Still, those names reflect Dumont’s “lofty ambitions,” Stein writes, explaining that the Mavs governor wants to do his due diligence on some of the NBA’s top front office executives in case one might be attainable.
Another possible target cited by both Mannix and Stein is Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly, whose deal in Minnesota expires at season’s end. Some rival teams believe Connelly might leave his current position, and Dallas hired former Wolves executive Ethan Casson as their president on the business side, according to Stein, though he adds that Minnesota appears motivated to work out a new deal to retain Connelly.
The target most frequently linked to the Mavericks by Stein’s sources is former Warriors general manager Bob Myers. But Myers accepted an “extremely lucrative” job last fall with Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, the group that owns the Sixers, and his responsibilities in that position span multiple sports. It remains to be seen whether he’d leave that role to return to an NBA front office, so he should probably be considered a long shot for the Mavs as well, Stein says.
Here’s more on the Mavs’ front office search:
- Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd had some conversations about transitioning to a front office role, sources tell Mannix. But both he and Stein hear that Kidd is much more likely to remain in his current position and partner with a new general manager.
- A number of “top aides to lead decision-makers” around the NBA have expressed back-channel interest in the Mavericks’ job, Stein reports. Even though the team has begun doing its homework on potential candidates, the search isn’t expected to begin “in earnest” until the regular season wraps up, Stein continues, adding that current co-interim GMs Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley are still considered candidates for the full-time job.
- Following up on his recent note about the Mavs not hiring a firm to guide their front office search, Stein says Dumont is considered the “point person” in the process.
- Speaking on Tuesday to a group of reporters, Mavs CEO Rick Welts had the following to say about the front office search, per Stein: “There is no specific set of characteristics. I can tell you there is a variety of candidates who present a variety of different personalities … different track records. It’s the most important decision that the organization is going to make for the coming seasons. So we are going to take our time and get it right.”
Cuban Says He Regrets Selling Mavs to Adelson, Dumont
In an appearance on the Intersections podcast (Instagram video link), former Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban said he doesn’t regret selling the team in December 2023 — but he does regret the buyers he chose, as Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News relays.
“I don’t regret selling. I regret who I sold to,” Cuban said in a teaser clip released Monday. “I made a lot of mistakes in the process, and I’ll leave it at that.”
Cuban sold the majority of his shares in the team to Miriam Adelson and her son-in-law, Las Vegas Sands CEO Patrick Dumont. Dumont has been the Mavericks’ governor since the sale was completed.
Cuban, who still controls a 27% stake in the Mavs, said when the sale was announced that he would still be the team’s top basketball decision-maker, but it turned out he had no contractual grounds for that role.
As Christian Clark of The Athletic notes, it was evident in February 2025 that Cuban’s influence in the organization had waned considerably when Dumont signed off on the decision to trade Luka Doncic. Former general manager Nico Harrison, who was hired by Cuban and was dismissed by Dumont in November, reportedly led those negotiations.
Cuban still attends the majority of Dallas’ home games, according to Clark. The Mavericks are currently 24-50, the sixth-worst record in the NBA.
Cuban told hosts Tom Leppert and Kyle Waldrep he sold the Mavs because “it’s a big emotional commitment” and he didn’t want his children to be involved with the team.
“You hear the passion and everything,” Cuban said. “Now imagine going up and down like that every single game. That’s hard.
“… My kids, they were coming of age where they would be of the mindset (that) maybe they want to work at the Mavs, and I didn’t want that for them. … If fans don’t like what you’re doing or the team’s not doing well, you’re the worst human being on the planet, and they treat you that way.”
Southwest Notes: Middleton, Mavs, Spurs, J. Smith
Prior to Friday’s loss vs. Memphis, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd confirmed that Khris Middleton is a buyout candidate ahead of Sunday’s deadline to be waived by one team and remain eligible to appear in the postseason for another club, per Ron Harrod Jr. of DLLS Mavs (Twitter video link).
“That’s up to Khris,” Kidd said. “We support whatever decision he makes if he’s going to stay or if he’s gonna get bought out. But I think he’s gotta make that decision here pretty quick.”
As reported by Marc Stein of The Stein Line, Middleton is evaluating whether to finish out his expiring contract with Dallas or to reach a buyout agreement to sign with a playoff team. The Nuggets and Spurs are said to be among the teams with interest in the 34-year-old small forward.
According to Grant Afseth of DallasHoopsJournal.com, NBA personnel have been keeping close tabs on Middleton since he was traded to the Mavericks ahead of this month’s deadline. One scout likes what he’s seen of the 14-year veteran, while an anonymous executive said Middleton might be better off staying with Dallas — the three-time All-Star would forfeit his Bird rights if he agrees to a buyout.
“His numbers have been down quite a bit — and his efficiency never recovered with the Wizards,” the executive told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “He might be best off playing this season out in Dallas where they’re letting him play his game and build some momentum for himself going into free agency. He’s going to get minutes and touches in Dallas. That may not be consistent on a contender. He could join a contender in the summer. I understand the appeal of joining a contender now, though.”
That same front office employee told Afseth that Middleton could help the Mavericks, but it’s not a straightforward situation.
“When he’s in a rhythm, he’s going to help a team win games. That may hurt the Mavericks’ chances of maximizing draft position now,” the executive said. “But he’s a great locker room guy. He’s genuine about helping younger teammates. That’s a good veteran to have on your team. He’d be a piece that could help them when Kyrie Irving is healthy and ready to go next season. You want vets like [Middleton] around Cooper Flagg.”
Here’s more from the Southwest:
- During Thursday’s game vs. Sacramento, Mavericks CEO Rick Welts joined the team’s broadcast and said governor Patrick Dumont decided not to raise ticket prices for 2026/27 because the Mavs didn’t meet expectations, according to Christian Clark of The Athletic. “It was one of the strangest meetings I’ve been in in my 48 years in the league, where you sit down with the owner,” Welts said. “The staff has done two months of work to figure out where tickets might be underpriced. Patrick preempted the conversation before it got started and said, ‘Look, we didn’t deliver this year. We didn’t deliver on the team as expected. We’re not going to raise one ticket price this year.’ A popular decision. The right one as well.”
- Thursday’s win at Brooklyn marked the Spurs‘ 11th consecutive victory, writes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. The Spurs went undefeated in February, the third time the team has had an unblemished month. “It feels like the players are finding different ways to win,” head coach Mitch Johnson said. “That’s a sign of growth.” Jared Weiss of The Athletic takes a closer look at San Antonio’s undefeated month, writing that a variety of players contributed on a game-to-game basis. The Spurs have also found ways to win even when they aren’t playing their best. “Does (the undefeated month) mean it was perfect? Not at all,” Victor Wembanyama said. “But looking back, it’s never really perfect. So it’s pretty satisfying.”
- Fourth-year Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. was sidelined for Saturday’s game in Miami and will miss Monday’s game at Washington as well, per Varun Shankar of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Smith, who sprained his right ankle in Thursday’s comeback win in Orlando, is targeting next Thursday against Golden State for his return to the court, Shankar adds.
Mavericks Notes: Cuban, Ownership, New Arena, Middleton
After reporting on Wednesday that the Dumont and Adelson families have no interest in selling the Mavericks back to Mark Cuban, Marc Stein of The Stein Line (subscription required) sheds some light on Cuban’s diminishing role with the franchise. Cuban was brought back to the inner circle of decision makers after former general manager Nico Harrison was fired in November, but sources tell Stein that his influence has already started to wane.
Co-interim GMs Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley were solely responsible for the decision to trade Anthony Davis to Washington last week, according to Stein. He also hears that Riccardi addressed the players on Saturday to explain the trade deadline moves and set expectations for the remainder of the season.
Stein notes that the 2023 sale agreement gives the Dumonts and Adelsons an option — believed to be in effect through December of 2027 — to buy more of Cuban’s shares in the franchise and reduce his minority stake from 27% to as low as 7%. Stein adds that the families’ strong public denial of sale rumors could be interpreted as a message to Cuban to be more careful in his public comments.
Cuban told Stein on Wednesday that he hasn’t talked with team governor Patrick Dumont recently, but stated that he has received calls from “individuals, groups, financial people, you name it” who expressed interest in getting involved if the opportunity arises to repurchase the team.
There’s more from Dallas:
- It’s unlikely that the Adelsons would consider selling the Mavericks at any price, writes Kevin Sherrington of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required). Although they recognize it could take several years, the family bought the team with the vision of linking it to their casino business and they want to be ready if gambling is ever legalized in Texas.
- The Mavericks have reached an agreement with CAA Sports to handle their commercial strategy for a planned new arena, the team announced in a press release. The effort will focus on finding “world class brands” for naming rights and other opportunities. “We have an ambitious vision for the future of the Dallas Mavericks,” CEO Rick Welts said. “The opportunity ahead of us is significant. CAA Sports brings global expertise, deep industry relationships and a strong track record of delivering transformational partnerships for top echelon sports properties. They are the right teammate as we move into this next chapter.”
- There’s been speculation that Khris Middleton may be a buyout candidate after being acquired from Washington in the Davis deal, but coach Jason Kidd likes having him on the roster, per Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. Middleton came off the bench to contribute 13 points and five rebounds in 22 minutes on Tuesday in his Mavericks debut. “Some would say he was a throw-in,” said Kidd, who formerly coached Middleton in Milwaukee. “He’s a lot bigger than you think. He can post. He can shoot it. For me, it was exciting to be able to work with Khris early on in his basketball journey. He did all the hard work. When we got him, he was our best player at the time. Giannis (Antetokounmpo) not that far behind.”
Mavs Owners Have No Plans To Sell
While rumors circulated this week that there was an investor group interested in teaming up with Mavericks minority shareholder Mark Cuban to buy the franchise back from its new owners, it appears that any such efforts may be futile.
Marc Stein of The Stein Line reports (via Twitter) that the Dumont and Adelson families, led by Mavs governor Patrick Dumont, have no intentions of selling the team.
“The Dumont and Adelson families remain fully committed to the Dallas Mavericks’ franchise and to the Dallas community,” Stein’s source close to the Dumont family says (Twitter link). “They remain focused on building a championship organization for the long term.”
Since Monday’s report, Cuban expressed skepticism to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News that the current ownership group would be interested in selling the Mavs after having just bought the team in 2023, though he did confirm that he’s been approached by parties interested in making an attempt.
“I have been contacted by multiple groups and individuals who have interest in buying the Mavs,” Cuban told Townsend. “[But] I don’t know who the report was talking about. … I get asked fairly often if I would be part of a group if they could buy the team. I tell them all the same thing: I don’t see them selling
Townsend confirms Stein’s reporting and notes that the new ownership group has until December 2027 to buy out all but 7% of Cuban’s stake in the team. The Dumont/Adelson group does plan to at least buy some part of Cuban’s remaining 27% stake, Townsend writes, adding that he believes that Dumont is planning to be with the Mavericks for the long term.
Investor Group Wants To Join Cuban In Attempt To Buy Back Mavericks
An unidentified Dallas investor group is interested in partnering with former owner Mark Cuban in attempt to buy back the Mavericks, Marc Stein reports at The Stein Line (Substack link).
As Stein writes, Cuban was the majority owner of the Mavericks for 23-and-a-half seasons until he sold the team to the Dumont and Adelson families in 2023. Cuban still holds a 27% stake in the Mavericks, but the Dumont and Adelson families have the option to buy another 20% of Cuban’s shares within the next year if they so choose, according to Stein.
It’s unclear if the two families have any interest in selling the team so soon after they purchased it. A source close to team governor Patrick Dumont told The Stein Line that “the family remains excited about the future of the franchise and the Cooper Flagg era.”
Cuban, who has been acting as an unofficial adviser to Dumont since former president of basketball operations Nico Harrison was fired in November, declined to comment when reached by Stein.
Cuban claimed at the time he sold the team that he would remain the top decision-maker in the basketball operations department, Stein notes. However, that turned out to be inaccurate, and Cuban was reportedly pushed out of the team’s inner circle by Harrison.
Harrison’s stunning and incredibly unpopular decision last year to trade franchise player Luka Doncic to the Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick eventually resulted in his ouster. Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley have been operating as the team’s co-general managers, and orchestrated last week’s deadline deal which sent Davis to Washington.
Although Harrison often drew the brunt of fans’ ire, his dismissal hasn’t entirely quelled the unrest in Dallas, Stein adds. Dumont recently received mild boos when he was sitting courtside during Mark Aguirre‘s jersey retirement on January 29 (YouTube link).
Mavericks, Rockets To Play Preseason Games In Macao
The NBA China Games will continue this fall with two preseason meetings between the Mavericks and Rockets, the NBA and Sands China Ltd. announced Monday morning in a press release. The games will take place October 9 and 11 at The Venetian Arena in Macao.
The city hosted the Nets and Suns for a pair of preseason contests three months ago.
“The games in Macao earlier this season showed how much passion and enthusiasm there is for the NBA among fans in China and across Asia,” NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said. “We look forward to welcoming the Mavericks and Rockets to Macao and to once again engaging fans, aspiring players and the local community through the games and surrounding events.”
Along with the games, the NBA and Sands are planning a series of basketball-related events. They will include NBA House and NBA Fan Day, youth basketball clinics and a Community Impact Week hosted by NBA Cares and Sands Cares featuring social impact programming focused on health, wellness and sustainability.
The games between the Southwest Division rivals will reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories through television, digital media and social media, according to the release. Marketing partners for the event will include Amazon Web Services, Gatorade, Nike and Tissot.
Dallas and Houston have been rumored as participants since Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont attended the games in October. He sat next to former Rocket and Chinese basketball legend Yao Ming, prompting speculation that the two franchises were next in line to be selected, according to Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required). Mavericks employees have made several trips to Macao in recent weeks to finalize the details, Townsend adds.
Townsend also states that Dumont, whose Sands Corp. runs five casino resorts on Macao’s Cotai Strip and on the Macao peninsula, played a vital role in resuming the relationship between the NBA and China following a 2019 dispute sparked by Daryl Morey’s online support of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.
“For the Mavericks, this is a meaningful opportunity to represent our organization and our fans on an international stage,” Dumont said in the release. “Following our recent game in Mexico City, playing in Macao reflects our club’s continued growth and the strong connection we’ve built with fans.”
Both organizations have been frequent participants in the NBA’s overseas ventures, dating back to 1992 when they met in the league’s first preseason game in Mexico City. They enjoy strong worldwide followings based on their history of having international stars on their rosters.
“The Houston Rockets are an iconic brand with support around the globe, and we are honored to be selected alongside the Dallas Mavericks to bring a Texas-sized matchup to Macao as part of The NBA China Games 2026,” said Rockets alternate governor Patrick Fertitta. “Since drafting Hall of Famer Yao Ming first overall in 2002, we have received overwhelming love from the passionate basketball fans of China and built several cherished memories playing overseas. We are excited to have another opportunity to represent the NBA abroad and showcase our team in front of the fans in Macao next preseason.”