Theis came aboard the Houston Rockets in the offseason as a more defensive-minded replacement for the departed Kelly Olynyk when the Chicago Bulls sent him over in a sign and trade on a four-year, $36 million deal, and the Rockets started off the season running a two-big lineup with Theis at center and Christian Wood at power forward.
Unfortunately for the Rockets, Theis’s inability to sufficiently spread the floor had major issues for Houston’s offensive spacing which was not offset enough by Theis’s defensive play to make the two-big lineup viable moving forward. In addition, it also had an effect on Christian Wood’s offensive output, so the team scrapped the look by December and began bringing Theis off of the bench or simply not playing him at all.