Houston opened camp with a sharper edge Tuesday: 52 regular-season wins have not changed the Rockets’ standard after back-to-back first-round playoff exits. Entering his fourth season on the Houston bench, Ime Udoka said the group is aiming well beyond simply getting back into the bracket.
“We did not come here just to reach the first round,” Udoka said. “We want to make real noise.”
The Rockets were the NBA’s first team to hold media day and will take their first preseason swings against the Dallas Mavericks on Oct. 9 and 11 in Macao, China. The tone around the gym was notably lighter than it was a year ago, largely because Fred VanVleet is back in uniform.
VanVleet cleared as Houston gets healthier
VanVleet missed the entire previous season after suffering an ACL tear just before last year’s media day. Udoka said the veteran point guard has full clearance for training camp, giving Houston back a lead guard who was absent through a difficult injury stretch.
VanVleet said he feels encouraged with roughly 30 days remaining before the regular season, while acknowledging that his return will continue to be managed as a progression rather than a finished product.
General manager Rafael Stone said the timing of VanVleet’s injury created uncertainty heading into last season. With more continuity and a healthier roster this time around, Stone said he has a clearer sense of what the Rockets can become.
Houston also expects a fuller season from Steven Adams, who appeared in only 32 games last year after an ankle injury led to surgery. The club’s major offseason addition was Marcus Smart, the 2021-22 Kia Defensive Player of the Year. The Rockets see Smart as another demanding defensive voice alongside Amen Thompson, who is entering his fourth NBA season.
Durant pushes back on minute-cutting plan
Kevin Durant started 78 games in his first Houston season following the blockbuster deal that brought him from Phoenix. He stayed healthy during the regular season but played only once in the postseason after an ankle injury, as the Los Angeles Lakers eliminated Houston in six games.
Udoka said he wants to lower the workloads of both Thompson and Durant after they finished first and second on the Rockets in regular-season minutes last season. Durant, a 16-time All-Star who turns 38 next week, made clear that he does not want rest for rest’s sake.
“I’ve said this for a long time: I’m better when I’m on the floor,” Durant said. “The team is better when I’m on the floor.”
Durant said he is comfortable sitting late in a game when Houston has a secure lead. What he does not support is a preset reduction in minutes solely because of age or prior workload.
“If the game requires me, I want to play,” Durant said, adding that his preparation is built around handling the full season and even 48-minute nights when necessary.
Closing games is the next test
Houston’s staff has identified late-game execution as a central issue for the coming season. More than half of the Rockets’ 30 losses last year came after they had built double-digit advantages, a costly pattern for a team trying to move from playoff participant to legitimate contender.
Stone believes the returns of VanVleet and Adams, coupled with cleaner finishes, leave considerable room for improvement even after a successful regular season.
“We dealt with a number of challenges, especially injuries, and there were plenty of games we believed we should have won,” Stone said. “We still had a good season. There is a lot there for us to improve.”
The longer target is clear: Houston is chasing its first championship since the franchise won consecutive titles in 1994 and 1995. The immediate work begins in camp, with a healthier backcourt, more depth in the frontcourt and a coaching staff determined that another first-round exit will not be enough.
