STARKVILLE — Mississippi State forward Cameron Matthews signed with the Houston Rockets on Thursday after going undrafted in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft. Matthews, a five-year player with the Bulldogs, was signed to an Exhibit 10 deal by the club, a one-year non-guaranteed contract for the player to play with either the Rockets or their affiliate G League team, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. 

Matthews was viewed as a late second-round prospect, but went undrafted. 

The Rockets traded away the 10th and 59th overall picks in the draft as part of a deal to acquire Kevin Durant from the Phoenix Suns, making Matthews the team’s only rookie from the 2025 class. 

Matthews became a key player for the Bulldogs as a junior and started all but three games over his last three seasons with the team. Those years saw the team reach the NCAA Tournament three times, but fail to advance past the first game each time. 

As a graduate senior, Matthews averaged 7.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game and recorded a total of 23 blocks for MSU in the 2024-25 season. He had a memorable 19-point performance in a loss to Kentucky at The Hump in SEC play, a career-high scoring performance. 

Matthews accumulated several individual accolades at MSU, and was widely recognized for his defensive play. He is a two-time All-SEC Defensive Team selection and was named to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year watchlist in 2025. He is also a two-time Top 10 Glue Guy recipient from College Hoops Today.