The Rockets are off to a fast start, and Fred VanVleet says the face Ime Udoka shows on the sideline isn’t the whole picture.
Houston moved to the top of the Western Conference standings after a 121-114 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night. That victory followed division wins over the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs, giving the Rockets a clean early run through the schedule.
VanVleet, who returned after missing last season with an ACL injury, has already become a major part of that start. And during a recent appearance on Sports on Prime, he pulled back the curtain on what Udoka is like when the game clock isn’t running.
“Yes, but not during the game. For the other 21 hours of the day, he’s pretty unserious.
He’s actually very funny, joking all the time, making jokes and cracking jokes on people. But during the game, it’s hard to get him to smile.
I always try to make jokes with him and loosen him up a little bit during the game because, no matter what, he’s mad at us, he’s mad at the refs, or he’s mad at the other team. He’s just an angry bull out there, man.
But that’s why I’m out there, to kind of be the bridge between him and our team.”
That edge on the bench has helped define Udoka’s style, and with Houston trying to establish itself as a real contender, the pressure around him is easy to understand. Head coaching jobs in the NBA don’t come with much patience, and Udoka will be expected to keep proving he belongs among the league’s best.
His track record already includes a Finals trip in his first season as a head coach in 2022. But since arriving in Houston in 2023, the Rockets have not gotten past the first round of the playoffs.
There’s also the roster to consider. Kevin Durant, Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson all have the kind of upside that could put them in All-Star conversations in 2027.
With Durant holding a player option for the 2027-2028 season, Houston is clearly set up to think in win-now terms, especially with the veteran still producing at a high level. He averaged 26.0 points in 36.4 minutes per game last season.
So far, Udoka has done what a coach of a title-caliber team is supposed to do. The Rockets have leaned into defense, and that was a key factor in Friday’s win over the Spurs. Houston entered Sunday as one of only two 3-0 teams in the NBA.
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The bigger picture is even more interesting because San Antonio is still regarded as one of the Western Conferences top teams, yet Houston could end up being a difficult draw for them in a postseason setting. The Rockets have spent enough time assembling a roster with answers for different looks that the next step may be less about whether they can hang with elite opponents and more about which matchup gives them the best chance to prove it. [Read more 🡒]