Former Indiana men’s basketball superstar forward Cody Zeller was traded to the Houston Rockets on Thursday afternoon, according to ESPN Senior NBA Insider Shams Charania. The Atlanta Hawks also sent a 2028 second-round pick to the Rockets in the deal.
Zeller spent two seasons at Indiana from 2011-13 under former head coach Tom Crean. He averaged 15.6 and 16.5 points per game across the two campaigns, respectively. Dubbed “The Big Handsome,” Zeller earned Second-Team All-American honors during his sophomore season.
The Washington, Indiana, native declared for the draft following the Hoosiers’ loss to Syracuse University in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. Just two picks after former Indiana guard Victor Oladipo was selected by the Orlando Magic, the then-Charlotte Bobcats chose Zeller with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft.
Zeller spent his first eight seasons in the NBA with the Charlotte franchise, who transitioned to the Hornets after the 2013-14 season.
Then, over the past three seasons, Zeller has spent time with three different franchises. In 2021-22, he played for the Portland Trail Blazers before suiting up for the Miami Heat and New Orleans Pelicans in 2022-23 and 2023-24, respectively.
So far this season, the 6-foot-11 Zeller has yet to play due to “personal reasons.”
Zeller became the second former Indiana men’s basketball player to be traded ahead of the NBA’s trade deadline. Guard Jalen Hood-Schifino was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Utah Jazz in a shocking deal that sent former Dallas Mavericks All-NBA guard Luka Dončić to the Lakers.
The traded deadline, which was 3 p.m. Thursday, has now passed.
Dalton James covers Indiana women's basketball and football for the Indiana Daily Student. You can follow him at @DaltonMJames on X and contact him via email at jamesdm@iu.edu.
