Patrick Beverley will have surgery, out for the season

Injuries have been a big part of the story for the Houston Rockets this season and the narrative just kept on going on Monday.

Patrick Beverley will indeed opt for surgery on his wrist and is out for the rest of the 2014-15 season and playoffs, the Rockets announced today. Beverley will undergo the surgery tomorrow.

The Rocket point guard suffered torn ligaments in his left wrist last week in a game against the Pacers and was waiting a week, talking to specialists, before deciding how to proceed.

Beverley’s shooting numbers were down this year — the third year guard averaged 10.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 30.8 minutes per game in 56 appearances with the Rockets this season. He also played some games this year where his defensive impact wasn’t quite the same as previous seasons, but he’s been a key cog to the Rockets’ attack in that he plays strong defense, keeps the turnovers down and knows his spots for kickouts for threes. His absence will definitely be felt.

The Rockets will turn to Jason Terry and Pablo Prigioni to fill the void, but both players are 37 years old. Look for Corey Brewer to likely pick up the defensive slack on opposing point guards (and there are plenty the Rockets could potentially face in the West playoffs). Rookie Nick Johnson, who has been seeing some meaningful minutes the past two games and tackled the challenge of defending John Wall for stretches on Sunday, could help here as well.

As for the future, Beverley is a restricted free agent this summer, meaning the Rockets will have the right to match any offer made by another club — the same situation the Rockets were in with Chandler Parsons last summer.

So the situation raises the question of whether Beverley has played his last game as a Houston Rocket. The Rockets want Beverley back, but they are all about value — there will be a number that they won’t cross, and it’s going to be lower than the bar they set for Parsons.

There’s also the matter of other point guards the Rockets may be looking at. The Rockets have had interest for years in bringing over 2009 second round pick Sergio Llull, but he has resisted NBA pitches. That may be changing as an ESPN source was quoted as saying there’s a “pretty decent chance” Llull comes over next season. Hoopshype claimed the Rockets have already made a financial pitch to the seasoned combo guard. Daryl Morey and company should also have a decent first round pick from the New Orleans Pelicans (Asik trade), currently projected 14th overall, that could potentially be used on a point guard.