Although Houston guard Brandon Knight appears close to a return from offseason knee surgery, it’s possible that his official Rockets debut never arrives.

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reports that the Rockets are shopping Brandon Knight’s contract in their continued pursuit of wing depth.

The Rockets front office has been very active in trying to get a wing player, even a guard, in the mix there. Brandon Knight is still a couple weeks out from his knee surgery that he underwent over the summer, right after his trade to the Rockets. There’s no timetable for him. They’re hopeful in the next couple weeks he’s going to be able to play, but, in the meantime, they are shopping his contract, are adding a pick or two, I’m told, in potential deal packages. It’s just that no one really wants, right now, to take on Brandon Knight’s contract and have to deal with the $16 million he’s owed next season. So this is going to be an uphill climb for the Rockets to attain talent on this team.

Knight, 27, has not played in an NBA game since Feb. 2017, prior to tearing his left ACL. The market for a recovering question mark with a sizable salary is fairly dry, though interest could pick up once Knight is healthy. He scored 16 points in his Rio Grande Valley Vipers debut last week, on a one-game rehab assignment in the G League.

Knight was previously shopped with teammate Marquese Chriss and four first-round draft picks while the Rockets attempted to pry veteran wing Jimmy Butler from the Minnesota Timberwolves.