Garrett Temple was released by the Houston Rockets today after two consecutive 10-day contracts so the Rockets could sign Temple's D-League teammate Will Conroy.

He won't be returning to the D-League, however, because sources close to the situation say that he'll be signing a 10-day contract with the Sacramento Kings.

With the Rockets, Temple appeared in nine games and averaged 5.0 points and 1.6 rebounds while shooting 45% from the field.  In the D-League, Temple averaged 14.9 points and shot 43% from the field in 30 games.

Temple is a player that isn't going to astound anyone when looking at the box score: He didn't average double-digits at LSU and was the sixth leading scorer while with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

Actually, before Temple's senior season at LSU, DraftExpress Jonathan Givony had the following to say:

It's extremely rare to see a player average 34 minutes per game and score just 6 points in that span, shooting under 40% from the field, 30% from beyond the arc, and barely getting to the free throw line in the process. Most teams at any level of basketball just cannot afford to have a player on the court that simply is not a threat to score, and until Temple shows otherwise, that's the only way he can currently be labeled.

While there are many traits that may draw you to Temple, there are equally as many traits that he could use work on. Most glaring is the fact that he is an incredibly limited offensive player, producing the second worst scoring rate of any player in our NCAA database.

His scoring and percentages have been up since becoming a pro (which would obviously make sense), but he still doesn't get to the free-throw line very well.  His offense isn't amazing, but he can score.  As I wrote back when he was called-up to the Rockets:

For the Vipers, he's taken more of a scoring role, potentially being one of the better isolation players in the D-League - his typical gameplan seems to be get the ball, use his first step to get the defender off balance, pretend like he's going to drive the lane and drop a 17-foot jumper. In last night's nationally televised VERSUS game, Temple hit 6-of-11 from the field, including 3-of-5 from 3-point land, to finish 16 points, six boards and five assists in 36 minutes of action.

Defensively, he definitely has great tools, though according to Synergy I'm told he is an average to below average defensive player - average being the time he spent in the D-League.  Still, his wingspan is wide and he's quick on his feet and generally looks like he's doing a better job than that would indicate.  With solid coaching, this is probably the end of the court he'll make a living on in the NBA.

I really like this call-up as a play for next season/somebody to push the rest of the Kings in practice, but I don't think he's ready to consistently contribute in the NBA this season.  Still, it's better than them deciding to give Mikki Moore another try!