An unprecedented group workout is being planned for the weekend of April 29 in New Jersey which could dramatically alter the landscape of this year's draft class, particularly in regard to how underclassmen are able to “test the waters” when deciding whether or not to turn pro.

The workout would occur between the deadline set by the NBA for underclassmen to declare for the draft (April 24) and the deadline set by the NCAA for underclassmen to withdraw from the draft without losing their college eligibility (May 8).

Still awaiting approval from the NBA League office, the workout is for draft-eligible prospects at which all 30 NBA teams can attend. The New Jersey Nets, in conjunction with the Houston Rockets and New York Knicks, are hoping to host this event at their practice facility in East Rutherford.

Ideally this workout will feature as many top draft prospects as are willing to attend—not just underclassmen who are “testing the waters,” but also seniors and international players. Measurements and athletic, combine-style testing will also likely be conducted.

While pleased by the development of his young team, Houston Rockets owner Les Alexander is holding off reaching a decision about bring back coach Rick Adelman for next season.  He also said he has not discussed the matter with Adelman who is in the last year of his contract.

"The decision-making process that goes into it takes place after the season," Alexander said. "We haven't had any talks about it.

For his part, Adelman has said that he will also take time after the season is over to decide if he wants to continue coaching and if he wants to return to the Rockets.

Houston general manager Daryl Morey pursued a trade for Carmelo Anthony, but now that the team has played so well without a big star, owner Leslie Alexander is less willing to make that type of move.

"Definitely, the way our players are playing," Alexander said. "Daryl and I always fight about this. It's all give and take. I think our guys have shown they are capable of winning a championship if we add a couple pieces to them. I don't want to give them away for some other player.

"We are young. (Patrick) Patterson. (Kyle) Lowry's just 24. Chase (Budinger), Courtney (Lee) and Jordan Hill. You can go on and on and on. Chuck Hayes (28) is not that old. Yao (Ming) is only 31. There is no reason he can't have five or six more years."

The Rockets are 12-4 since the break.

"I had dinner with Chuck Hayes," Alexander said. "He mentioned, 'We all know what we're doing now. We all know what to do; we're doing the right thing at every part of the game, which makes us a very tough team to beat.'

"I definitely think we have a bright future. If we gain a couple of pieces, I think we can be a very good team."

After five consecutive wins, the Houston Rockets have moved from 11th to ninth in the Western Conference, from 3½ games behind Memphis to two games out of the last playoff spot.

But little else has changed. When the Rockets head out on a three-game road trip with 10 to play, they will be in almost must-win peril.

"I told them we started something on the road, now we have to go out on the road and win," coach Rick Adelman said. "That's what we have to do to keep this going.

"The pressure is on to keep winning. That's what we tried to do after we lost to San Antonio. We had a tough game with Phoenix and we won it. We beat Boston. Now we want to keep this rolling."

The Rockets' season-best five-game home winning streak has kept them in the race, but no one who had been in the fight before the Rockets' roll has slumped enough to allow them a chance to exhale.

Chuck Hayes recorded his first triple-double on Wednesday, finishing with 13 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists.

"That was the hardest point of my life," Hayes said about recording his 10th point. "I felt like I was stuck at nine for like two days, but I'm happy I got the win. The fan support was great. The guys were really cheering me on for this achievement and once it was over, it was like the biggest relief that I've had in a long time.

"I didn't realize I was that close. I was close before, but I didn't think it would happen. Once it did, it was a sense of enjoyment. All the fans stood up (during the free throws), making noise. I started thinking about the missed layup I had in the third quarter. Kyle looked out for me, called a play for me. I was able to finish with a jump hook. Then I ended up making a lucky shot over my head."

Hayes averages just 2.5 assists per game.

Among the more interesting tidbits in David Aldridge’s column on the pro potential of this year’s crop of point guards is UConn’s Kemba Walker drawing comparison to Houston’s Kyle Lowry and Denver’s Ty Lawson.

"Walker's had the better year (than Kentucky’s Brandon Knight), he's got the buzz, he had the great Big East tournament, but he's probably 5-foot-10," a veteran personnel man told Aldridge. "If you look around the NBA, it doesn't mean you can't play. Earl Boykins proved you can play. But how many guys come into the NBA and dominate under six feet? That doesn't mean the guy can't play. I don't see him playing with the toughness of a Kyle Lowry, but I could see him coming in and being as effective as him."

One Pacific Division personnel man insists Walker will be the second point guard taken in the draft:

"You look at Ty Lawson and what he's done and he's a little more dynamic than Ty. He has more of a defensive mindset than last year and he's kind of evolved into the kind of guy that can get his shot. Splitting pick and rolls, stopping on a dime and shooting the floater. You see NBA players make those plays."

With Chase Budinger spraining his left ankle Sunday against the Utah Jazz, the Rockets will make another call to familiar fill-in Mike Harris.

Harris, who recently completed his season in China, played in 25 games in two previous seasons with the Rockets, averaging 3.5 points and three rebounds in an average of 9.6 minutes.

The Miami Heat's LeBron James and the Houston Rockets' Kyle Lowry today were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, March 14, through Sunday, March 20.

James averaged a league-high 29.0 points on .547 shooting to go along with 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists as the Heat went 3-1. On March 18, James scored a game-high 43 points at Atlanta, including 23 in the third quarter, shooting 16-for-21 from the field overall. This is fifth time James has received Player of the Week honors this season.

Lowry led the Rockets to a 4-0 week, averaging 19.3 points, 7.5 assists and 7.3 rebounds to help keep Houston in the hunt for a playoff berth. He has recorded double-figure scoring efforts in a career-high 12 consecutive games. On March 20, Lowry tallied 28 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, becoming the fourth Rockets player since 2002-03 to record a triple-double.

Houston Rockets center Hasheem Thabeet was assigned to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Rockets’ NBA Development League affiliate, it was announced today. The assignment marks the 48th time in the 2010-11 season an NBA player has been assigned to an NBA D-League affiliate, and it is the second assignment for Thabeet, a second-year pro out of Connecticut.

Thabeet, the No. 2 overall selection in the 2009 NBA Draft, is the 34th NBA player to be assigned to the NBA D-League this season, which is an all-time high. The Memphis Grizzlies, who drafted Thabeet, assigned him to the Dakota Wizards last season, where he averaged 13.8 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.8 blocks in six games.

Thabeet (7-3, 263) has appeared in 115 career NBA games, averaging 2.3 points and 2.8 rebounds in 10.9 minutes.

If the Rockets want to be a playoff team this season, they're going to have to defend like a playoff team.

They are the third-most prolific offensive team in the league, but are battling to stay in playoff contention because of a defense in the bottom 10 in opposing scoring, field-goal percentage and points per possession.

The Rockets have won the last 15 times they held an opponent below 100 points, with those foes averaging 89.8 points and 41.4 percent shooting. That includes wins this week over the Suns and Bobcats amid signs the Rockets have begun to put together a defense that won't embarrass their offense.

"Going off the last two games, it's getting better," Chuck Hayes said. "Our effort has always been there in the last month on the defensive end. These last two games, we've really taken some strides and taken pride in our defense."

"We don't need to be a great defensive team. We just need to get stops when they're needed — late in the game, to stop a run, at the end of the shot clock," Hayes added. "If we get the stops at the crucial parts of the game, it should be OK to win. But to be a great defensive team in this late playoff run? We are who we are."