James Harden was sharp against lowly Phoenix. Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
The Rockets continued to add achievements to their already historic season this past week by not only clinching the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference for the first time in franchise history, but also clinching home court advantage throughout the playoffs. The Rockets faced one of their easier weeks of competition, and after effortlessly handling the Bulls on Tuesday, Houston struggled against an abysmal Phoenix team Friday before being blown out Sunday versus the San Antonio Spurs. The Rockets are guaranteed the best record in the league, but their performance in the past two games is cause for concern as the playoffs loom ahead.
Game 75: Houston vs Chicago Bulls (W, 118-86)
James Harden rested Tuesday, as the Rockets took on a team so bad that the NBA commissioner warned them against what is perceived by most as tanking. The Bulls looked just as outmatched on the court as they did on paper, and by midway through the third quarter, the Rockets lead was an overwhelming 40 points. Eric Gordon led the team with 31 points and a career-high 8 three-pointers on the way to the Rockets’ tenth straight victory. Trevor Ariza followed with 21 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 steals.
Game 76: Houston vs Phoenix Suns (W, 104-103)
Friday night’s matchup against Phoenix should have been as easy of a victory as Tuesday’s considering that the Suns own the worst record in the NBA. I was actually regretting going to the game over watching the Astros’ second game of the season, and when the Suns’ lead reached 21 points I felt validated, albeit for the opposite reason I had anticipated. Chris Paul and Eric Gordon both sat, and the Rockets played sloppy and uninspired until halfway through the third when the rally began. Houston would trim the lead down to 11 heading into the fourth quarter, where Harden would do what Harden has done plenty of times before this season. Harden would spearhead a furious comeback culminated by a game-tying stepback 3-pointer with 12 seconds left. Phoenix would respond and bury a two-point mid range shot with 1.4 seconds left, prompting a Houston timeout. It seemed everyone in the building expected the inbounds pass to end up in the hands of Harden, but it was native Houstonian Gerald Green--who had made his first start as a Rocket that night--that freed himself up. The immediate catch and shoot was buried right in front of the Houston bench and Green was mobbed. Harden finished with 28 points, 8 rebounds, and 10 assists. P.J. Tucker buried 5 three-pointers on the way to an 18-point performance. The win was Houston’s 11th straight.
Game 77: Houston at San Antonio (L, 100-83)
Houston has handled San Antonio easily all season, so Sunday’s matchup seemed to provide as little intrigue as the other two games earlier in the week. Instead of cruising to a season sweep, however, Houston was dismantled and the Spurs held the Rockets to a season-low 83 points. The Rockets went 7-31 from three-point range as a team, and after Houston trimmed the lead down to 1 late in the first half, San Antonio regained its composure and pulled away to an easy victory. Harden finished with 25 points and 8 assists, while Gordon added 18 points.
Looking Ahead
The Rockets will need to shake off a disappointing week and regroup quickly, as this final full week of games features a full slate of playoff bound competition. Tuesday Houston will take on the Wizards at home, followed by a Thursday home game versus Portland and a Saturday contest against Oklahoma City. Houston will need to forego resting its starters this week if they’re to regain their rhythm heading into the postseason. It’s difficult to optimistically predict anything this upcoming week with the way the Rockets are currently performing, but if they return to form I expect wins against the Wizards and the Thunder at the very least.
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Astros keep doing this, and it’s getting hard to ignore
Jun 25, 2025, 10:01 pm
While the rolling Astros have a week of possible World Series preview matchups against the Phillies and Cubs, it’s the Rockets who made the biggest local sports headline with their acquisition of Kevin Durant. What a move! Of course there is risk involved in trading for a guy soon to turn 37 years old and who carries an injury history, but balancing risk vs. reward is a part of the game. This is a fabulous move for the Rockets. It’s understood that there are dissenters to this view. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, including people with the wrong opinion! Let’s dig in.
The Rockets had a wonderful season in winning 52 games before their disappointing first-round playoff loss to the Warriors, but like everyone else in the Western Conference, they were nowhere close to Oklahoma City’s caliber. While they finished second in the West, the Rockets only finished four games ahead of the play-in. That letting the stew simmer with further growth among their young players would yield true championship contention was no given for 2025-26 or beyond.
Kevin Durant is one of the 10 greatest offensive players the NBA has ever seen. Among his current contemporaries only Stephen Curry and Nikola Jokic make that list. For instance, Durant offensively has clearly been better than the late and legendary Kobe Bryant. To view it from a Houston perspective, Durant has been an indisputably greater offensive force than the amazing Hakeem Olajuwon. But this is not a nostalgia trip in which the Rockets are trading for a guy based on what he used to be. While Durant could hit the wall at any point, living in fear that it’s about to happen is no way to live because KD, approaching his 18th NBA season, is still an elite offensive player.
As to the durability concern, Durant played more games (62) this past season than did Fred VanVleet, Jabari Smith, and Tari Eason. The season before he played more games (75) than did VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, and Alperen Sengun. In each of the last two seasons Durant averaged more minutes per game (36.9) than any Rocket. That was stupid and/or desperate of the Suns, the Rockets will be smarter. Not that the workload eroded Durant’s production or efficiency. Over the two seasons he averaged almost 27 points per game while shooting 52 percent from the floor, 42 percent from behind the three-point line, and 85 percent from the free throw line. Awesomeness. The Rockets made the leap to being a very good team despite a frankly crummy half-court offense. The Rockets ranked 21st among the 30 NBA teams in three-point percentage, and dead last in free throw percentage. Amen Thompson has an array of skills and looks poised to be a unique star. Alas, Thompson has no credible jump shot. VanVleet is not a creator, Smith has limited handle. Adding Durant directly addresses the Rockets’ most glaring weakness.
The price the Rockets paid was in the big picture, minimal, unless you think Jalen Green is going to become a bonafide star. Green is still just 23 years old and spectacular athletically, but nothing he has done over four pro seasons suggests he’s on the cusp of greatness. In no season has Green even shot the league average from the floor or from three. His defense has never been as good as it should be given his athleticism. Compared to some other two-guards who made the NBA move one year removed from high school, four seasons into his career Green is waaaaaay behind where Shae Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Edwards, and Devin Booker were four seasons in, and now well behind his draft classmate Cade Cunningham. Dillon Brooks was a solid pro in two seasons here and shot a career-best from three in 2024-2025, but he’s being replaced by Kevin Durant! In terms of the draft pick capital sent to Phoenix, five second round picks are essentially meaningless. The Rockets have multiple extra first round picks in the coming years. As for the sole first-rounder dealt away, whichever player the Rockets would have taken 10th Wednesday night would have been rather unlikely to crack the playing rotation.
VanVleet signs extension
Re-signing Fred VanVleet to a two-year, 50 million dollar guarantee is sensible. In a vacuum, VanVleet was substantially overpaid at the over 40 mil he made per season the last two. He’s a middle-of-the-pack starting point guard. But his professionalism and headiness brought major value to the Rockets’ kiddie corps while their payroll was otherwise very low. Ideally, Reed Sheppard makes a leap to look like an NBA lead guard in his second season, after a pretty much zippo of a rookie campaign. Sheppard is supposed to be a lights-out shooter. For the Rockets to max out, they need two sharpshooters on the court to balance Thompson’s presence.
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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