The Take-Off: Houston Rockets 2024/2025 Season Preview
Ready to Launch. Perfect Problem. Extending Belief.
With Halloween approaching and spooky season in full-effect, the NBA prepares to kick off their 79th campaign full of scarily athletic players showcasing monstrous performances. After immensely improving last year, the Houston Rockets are eager to instill more fear in the league entering this season. Coming off their fourth straight year missing the playoffs, these Rockets aim to snap that skid with higher goals in mind this upcoming campaign. Entering the 58th season in franchise history, expectations for this year’s squad are the highest since the James Harden era, half a decade ago. Houston achieved a win-improvement of 19 games last year, the highest in the NBA, but narrowly missed out on earning a Play-In berth sporting a 41-41 record, resulting in an 11th place finish in the brutal Western Conference.
The starting lineup will once again consist of Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Jabari Smith Jr., and Alperen Sengun. With a full term under their belt with the guidance of Head Coach Ime Udoka, expect this starting unit to display enhanced chemistry on the court this year. As every season brings new players and faces to the organization, this year is no different. The Rockets drafted Reed Sheppard with the third overall pick in the draft this past summer. The sharpshooter from Kentucky has Rookie-of-the-Year potential if he receives enough playing time on a deep Houston roster. Houston also added veteran center Steven Adams, arguably one of the best offensive rebounders and toughest players in the game. The Adams addition is pertinent, as the team’s biggest hole to fill in the offseason was finding a center to back-up Sengun. Other than Sheppard and Adams, expect the usual suspects from last year to thrive in secondary roles this season. Amen Thompson and Tari Eason will likely receive the most minutes off the bench, with Steven Adams, Cam Whitmore and Reed Sheppard rounding out the rest of the rotation for the Rockets. Thompson and Eason, granted they stay healthy, are due for breakout seasons. Whitmore was one of the best per minute players on the roster last season, and if he sees enough action, Slam Whitmore could also be due for a breakout campaign. Filling out the rest of Houston’s roster are Jae’Sean Tate, Aaron Holiday, Jeff Green, and Jock Landale.
A loaded squad gives Ime Udoka a perfect problem for his bag of tricks. Unlike some teams in the NBA who rely on a few players to do the majority of their production, Houston has a plethora of guys who can be the player of the game on any given night. The Rockets are especially loaded at the shooting guard/small forward position. Starting with Jalen Green, Brooks, and even Jabari Smith Jr., this squad contains an arsenal of guys who can play the swingman role. Not to mention Thompson, Eason, Whitmore, Sheppard, and Tate. That’s eight players fighting for essentially those two positions, although Smith Jr. is more of a power forward. It’ll be interesting to see how coach Udoka uses the weapons in his rotation to start the season. Injuries happen to every team every season, but Houston is prepared if any of their rotational players go down. The depth on this squad is frightening for the rest of the league. However, the Rockets are still a young team with developing players and a lot to prove on the court before the NBA starts taking notice. Besides the veterans consisting of VanVleet, Brooks, and Adams, no one else on Houston’s squad is even close to reaching the prime of their careers. Meaning, the Rockets boost several players who could be on the verge of having breakout seasons. Expect Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore to make huge leaps in their sophomore years. And Jabari Smith Jr. is in line for potentially an All-Star caliber season if he can maintain consistency.
Just a couple of days before the team’s Opening Night game, Houston extended the contracts at the root of this Rockets resurgence: Alperen Sengun, and Jalen Green. Rafael Stone, Houston’s General Manager, locked in these two key pieces for the next several years. Sengun agreed to a 5 year, $185 million extension, and Green signed a deal equalling 3 years totaling $106 million. Both players are entering their fourth season with All-Star expectations on their shoulders. They’ve showed their value, with Sengun a potential All-Star this season after missing out last year. The big man’s put on muscle in the offseason, and is in store for his strongest season yet. The biggest question on the team is Jalen Green and his evolution as we enter this phase of his career. Boasting the biggest ceiling of any player on this team, Green has the ability to be a superstar in this league. Alperen Sengun is Houston’s best player right now, and is already on his way to stardom with the nickname “Mini-Joker”, after Denver’s superstar center Nikola Jokic. If Green can reach the potential that saw him selected second overall in the 2021 NBA Draft, expect the Rockets to take-off, and earn a playoff spot for the first time in five years. As Houston made a hard push for the playoffs near the end of last season, going 13-2 in March, Green exploded to average 27.7 points per game during that period. If he can maintain his offensive consistency this season, expect Jalen Green to finally perform at an All-Star level on a nightly basis.
How far will the Rockets fly this season? With a collection of young talent at the roster’s core, Houston is in position to contend for a while. This season’s nice mixture of up-and-coming players and solid veterans make the Rockets a threat to beat any team on any night, but the team’s youth and needed development realistically keeps the squad from being a championship contender this season. Despite not likely hoisting the Larry O’Brien trophy next June, Houston’s fans should have a lot to be excited for this season. The beginning of the team’s schedule is relatively easy, so the squad has a great chance to get off to hot start. The Rockets host the lowly Hornets on Opening Night, following a home game against the Grizzlies and then two road games against the Spurs. Maybe it’s wishful thinking, but Houston has a realistic shot to start the season 4-0, or at least 3-1 over their first quartet of matchups. Showcasing one of the most athletic teams in the NBA, the Rockets should be on the verge of making the playoffs, or at least securing a Play-In spot this year. Expect this squad to make enough noise to garner a playoff spot come season’s end. Despite the Western Conference remaining as cutthroat as ever this season.
Besides the reigning Western champion Dallas Mavericks, the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, and the rising Oklahoma City Thunder are all threats to earn home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. The Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Pelicans, and Memphis Grizzlies will also be in the mix in a brutally competitive Western Conference. In the Eastern Conference, the reigning-champion Boston Celtics will be looking to repeat, the Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks both made major additions to their rosters, and the Milwaukee Bucks look to bounce back after injuries cut their season short last year. In a league with superstar names a la LeBron James and Kevin Durant and legacy teams like the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics, you won’t hear Houston mentioned much among the NBA “water-cooler” talk. But don’t be surprised if that begins to change this season… and the Rockets scare some teams with their frighteningly improved play on the court.
