The Houston Rockets had a gaping hole at center when Clint Capela missed about a month with a thumb injury earlier this season. Nene is great as a backup, but at this stage in his career, he can’t fill in and play starters minutes.
As a result, the Rockets looked at the free agent market for a center, and scored big when they signed Kenneth Faried. By moving him from power forward to center, Houston took away Faried’s lack of floor spacing, which was his biggest weakness as a power forward. Faried brings a lot of energy off the bench, he’s a great rebounder, and he’s athletic enough to play above the rim despite being undersized for a center.