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Rockets' Danuel House exits bubble after NBA determines he had unauthorized guest in hotel room

Houston Rockets forward Danuel House has exited the NBA bubble after a league investigation found that he spent multiple hours with an unauthorized guest in his Disney World hotel room on Sept. 8, the NBA announced on Friday.

House will miss the rest of the Rockets’ postseason, with the team currently down 3-1 against the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals. The Rockets still have House listed as out for “personal reasons.”

Fortunately for the Rockets, the NBA said it determined the guest had no contact with the rest of the team.

Yahoo Sports senior NBA insider Chris Haynes reported on Thursday that the league had been looking into House allegedly allowing a female COVID-19 testing official into his hotel room. The NBA’s bubble rulebook forbids allowing other people into one’s hotel room, even teammates.

The Athletic has reported the official in question did not implicate House when questioned, but did say she had contact with Rockets backup center Tyson Chandler and another unnamed player. The NBA has reportedly since cleared Chandler.

Rockets’ season already looking over

Houston Rockets' Danuel House Jr. (4) looks up at the scoreboard during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Clippers Thursday, March 5, 2020, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Danuel House will miss the rest of the NBA playoffs. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Losing House, who was averaging 11.4 points and 5.8 rebounds in 31.0 minutes per game in the playoffs, is a significant blow for the Rockets, but it’s hard to believe their future will be any different because of it.

The Rockets are down 3-1 against the Lakers and looked like a lost cause for much of Game 4, until a too-late rally in the final minutes. After an encouraging Game 1, the team has had few answers for LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the rest of the Lakers’ lineup in the paint.

NBA’s first major bubble violation since play began

House’s transgression is the fourth known violation of bubble rules, and the first since play at Disney World began in late July.

Until now, the most infamous one might be that of Los Angeles Clippers guard Lou Williams, who made headlines when he visited a strip club in Atlanta while on an excused absence from the bubble to attend his grandfather’s funeral. Williams was assessed a 10-day quarantine upon returning the bubble after the NBA looked into his trip.

Sacramento Kings center Richaun Holmes and Rockets forward Bruno Caboclo were also hit with 10-day quarantines for violating rules shortly after arrival. Holmes admitted he had been picking up chicken wings after clearing quarantine, while Caboclo broke quarantine because he simply didn’t know the rules.

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