Though Nenê played sporadically down the stretch of the season, held out entirely of eight of the final 13 games, he has received consistent playing time in the postseason, averaging 12.1 minutes in the first four games of the playoffs.
This was, depending on matchups, always in mind for when the Rockets reached the postseason.
"Just being physical, just being Nenê," Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni said. "He gives us an element of toughness in there. I thought he's played pretty well. Clint's going to play the bulk of the minutes. But (Nenê is) giving us 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the game, of toughness.