Rockets’ No. 1 pick expected to join Vipers

HIDALGO — Talk about the rich getting richer.

The Rio Grande Valley Vipers are off to a 5-1 start in their inaugural NBA Development League season, and it appears they will be receiving another NBA reinforcement from the Houston Rockets.

The Rockets, one of the Vipers’ three NBA affiliates, are expected to announce Thursday morning that they are sending rookie point guard Aaron Brooks, their No. 1 pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, to play for the Vipers, sources confirmed Wednesday. The Rockets sent forward Steve Novak to the Vipers before the start of the season.

If Brooks is indeed assigned to the Valley team, he will be the first No. 1 choice from the 2007 draft assigned to the D-League.

“I haven’t heard anything officially, but that would be great,” Vipers President Abby Pierce said. “If we got a player from the Houston Rockets, he could be here for the game on Sunday (vs. the Tulsa, Okla., 66ers).”

Brooks, 22, was the 26th overall selection in last year’s NBA draft after a standout career at the University of Oregon in which he was a four-year starter and averaged 13.1 points and 4.1 assists per game. The 6-foot, 161-pound playmaker has seen action in two games for the Rockets, averaging 2.5 points in 2.0 minutes per game.

Brooks burst on the national scene last spring during the NCAA Tournament, leading Oregon to the St. Louis Regional Finals where he scored a game-high 27 points against eventual national champion Florida.

After being drafted by the Rockets, Brooks starred for the team’s Summer League squad, averaging 21.4 points and 5.2 assists in five games. He received T-Mobile Rookie of the Month honors for Summer League and was named to the 2007 NBA Summer League All-Star team.

Brooks was also named to the USA Basketball Men’s Select Team that was chosen to compete against the 2007 USA Senior National Team that eventually won the gold medal at the FIBA Americas Championship in Las Vegas. While playing for the USA Select Team, Brooks played against current NBA stars Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Jason Kidd.

At Houston, Brooks couldn’t break into the team’s point guard rotation, which features veterans Rafer Alston, Mike James and Steve Francis. Like with Novak, the Rockets likely want to get Brooks some playing time to keep his game sharp.

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Todd Mavreles covers the Rio Grande Valley Vipers for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4451.