Ime Udoka enters the 2026-27 season with his future hanging over him, and for the Houston Rockets, that makes next year feel like the line in the sand.
The argument around Udoka is familiar by now. Some fans have never warmed to him, while others see a coach who has done enough to stay in the upper tier of the league.
Either way, the numbers give him real support. In his two seasons in Houston, the Rockets finished 12th in Offensive Rating at 114.9 and eighth at 117.5.
Defensively, they’ve been even better, ranking sixth in 2024-25 and fifth in 2025-26.
That’s why the criticism of Udoka has shifted away from raw results and toward how Houston gets there. The Rockets led the NBA with a 36.3% Offensive Rebounding % last season, and the gap between Houston and second-place Portland at 33.2% was about the same as the gap between Portland and eighth-place Charlotte at 30.8%. The formula was clear: win the possession battle, limit turnovers, and grind teams down.
The approach changed in 2025-26. Fred VanVleet was out, Kevin Durant stepped in for Jalen Green offensively, and the offense leaned a little differently. Houston turned the ball over more, but the shot quality improved and the team still controlled the glass.
On paper, 2026-27 could bring the best version of that mix. The Rockets are expected to be formidable. But that only matters if it shows up when the games tighten.
Because that’s the real pressure point for Udoka now: playoff results. If Houston goes out in the first round for a third straight season, the explanation won’t carry much weight. At that point, the outcome is the issue.
The last two postseason exits have come with caveats. In 2024-25, the Rockets ran into the Warriors, a matchup that carried plenty of baggage for Houston fans.
Last season was messier. Durant played one game, but injuries to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves complicate the picture.
Still, losing to Luke Kennard and Marcus Smart was a bad look. Smart is now a Rocket, so Houston will also be dealing with his shooting regression.
There are still unanswered questions about how those series would have looked with everyone healthy. Could Houston have taken advantage of Reaves on defense enough to offset his offense?
Would Doncic have been too much, or would Durant have finished the job late? Nobody knows.
What is known is simpler: Udoka has one more season to make this case. His iso-heavy style and emphasis on effort may be more playoff-friendly than a more elaborate system, but that argument only matters if it leads to wins. If it doesn’t, three straight first-round exits will decide the conversation for him.
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Kevin Durant added another layer to that discussion by making clear he does not want his minutes reduced and wants to stay on the floor when the game calls for it. Coach Ime Udoka also left little doubt about how he views the organizations current position, saying the Rockets did not meet expectations last season and felt the group had plateaued. For a team trying to push past last years ceiling, that combination of urgency, restraint and dissatisfaction suggests the real work is still ahead. [Read more 🡒]