Kevin Durant doesn’t need much convincing about the size of the challenge waiting for the Rockets on Friday night.
Houston is coming off a double-digit win over the Dallas Mavericks in its season opener, but the next stop is a much sharper test: the reigning Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs in Austin, Texas. San Antonio finished 62-20 last season, and Victor Wembanyama’s rise has only intensified the attention around a team expected to jump right back into title contention.
Durant addressed the matchup during media availability, and he made it clear Houston knows what it’s walking into.
“[The Spurs] are a deep team. They’ve got one of the most unique players to ever touch the floor at the center position.
They’ve got plenty more guys on their team too that can wreak havoc… It’s going to be tough. We got our work cut out for us.
That’s an amazing part of the NBA season, getting thrown these tests early on. We’re looking forward to it.”
That test comes early, and it comes with a familiar setting for Durant, who is back in Austin, where he played for the Longhorns. The Rockets and Spurs are set for an 8:30 p.m. tip at the Moody Center.
Houston’s opener gave a first look at what this group can do when it’s rolling. The Mavericks didn’t make the playoffs last season, but Kyrie Irving’s return gave the result a little more weight. Durant led the way with 30 points, six rebounds and three assists, and he logged 37 minutes, a sign that a minutes restriction may not be necessary right now.
Jabari Smith Jr. matched him with 30 points, another encouraging sign for a Houston roster built around young pieces. His recent play has pushed him into the conversation as one of the more underrated members of the Rockets’ young core.
Fred VanVleet, Amen Thompson and Alperen Sengun also showed why Houston’s starting five could be among the league’s best, with interior scoring and fast-break pressure giving the group a real edge.
San Antonio, meanwhile, had a rough opening night of its own against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Wembanyama was limited to 12 points and went 1-for-13 from the field.
The center matchup adds another layer to Friday’s game. Sengun, an elite playmaker, and Wembanyama, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, both give their teams a different kind of force in the middle.
For Houston, this is one of the first real measuring sticks of the season. Just two games in, the Rockets are already being asked to show whether they’re ready for another step forward.
In Other News...
Rockets Face Early Depth Test Against Spurs With Rotation Uncertainty
The Rockets may already be staring at an early depth check before they get a real read on how this rotation will hold up. Backup center Steven Adams and reserve guard Reed Sheppard are both listed as questionable for the upcoming game against the Spurs, adding a layer of uncertainty to a roster that is still sorting out its bench roles and workload distribution.
Houston is also dealing with the timing of the matchup itself, since it lands on a nationally televised stage and comes with both teams carrying injury questions into the night. San Antonio has its own issues, with Tobias Harris out and Keldon Johnson and DeAaron Fox both listed as questionable, so the final look at the lineups could shift late and change the way this game is played from the opening tip. [Read more 🡒]
Rockets Already Face One Big Question About Going All In
The Rockets opened their season by putting a formidable group on the floor against the Mavericks, rolling out Fred VanVleet, Amen Thompson, Kevin Durant, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun. It was the kind of lineup that naturally invites bigger-picture talk, especially for a team that already looks more competitive than it did a year ago and now has to decide how aggressively it wants to chase a championship window.
Zach Lowe added to that conversation by suggesting Houston should at least think about a major trade if it believes this roster is ready to go all in. The logic is simple enough: the Rockets have a mix of veterans, young talent and draft capital that could matter in a star pursuit, with names like Reed Sheppard and Tari Eason available as possible trade pieces. The hard part is finding the right fit, and figuring out how far the front office is willing to push its chips toward the center. [Read more 🡒]
Jabari Smith Jr. Just Gave Rockets Fans Another Reason To Believe
The Rockets home opener offered an early glimpse of why Jabari Smith Jr. remains such a central part of their future. In a 128-110 win over Dallas, Smith looked comfortable attacking the game with more confidence and touch, showing the kind of offensive growth Houston has been waiting to see as it continues to sort out its long-term core.
What stood out most was how natural Smiths scoring looked within the flow of the offense, which is exactly why his presence alongside Kevin Durant matters so much for this group. Nights like this do not answer every question about his ceiling, but they do reinforce the idea that Houston may have another young piece ready to take a real step forward. [Read more 🡒]