Ime Udoka isn’t easing into the season with cautious language or lowered goals. At Rockets media day, the Houston coach made it clear he’s looking well past a quick postseason appearance.
“We’re not here to just make the first round, we want to make some real noise,” Udoka said. “Everybody’s hungrier for that and to take the next step and not plateau.”
That confidence comes after a 52-win season that still felt like it left something on the table. Houston did it without Fred VanVleet, who suffered a season-ending ACL tear before training camp, and then fell to the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs. General manager Rafael Stone pointed to the injuries and the close games the Rockets dropped along the way as reasons there’s room for more.
“We obviously had some challenges last year, particularly on the injury front and lost quite a few games that that we thought we could have won and we still had a good year,” Stone said. “So, I think there’s just a lot of meat on the bone for us to improve upon.”
VanVleet is now back in the mix and has been fully cleared medically as camp opens. He said he feels strong with the season about a month away, while also making it clear he knows the comeback still has layers to it.
“Where I am right now, with the season about 30 days out, I feel really good,” he said. “It’s going to be a process still, so you guys see won’t see the finished product, but I’m in a really good spot.”
Udoka said VanVleet has already been taking part in 5-on-5 scrimmages, though the Rockets are planning to manage him carefully at first. That means he likely won’t play both games of back-to-backs early in the season. VanVleet, meanwhile, is in a walk year after picking up his $25MM player option for this season.
Kevin Durant also pushed back on the idea that Houston should automatically cut back his workload. Udoka had suggested reduced playing time, but Durant made it clear he doesn’t want to be managed simply because of age or mileage.
“Not just for the sake of getting my minutes down just because ‘He’s older’ or ‘He played a lot of minutes,’” Durant said. “That’s what I’m supposed to be training for is to play the long haul, play 48 minutes a night. I get the concern, but if the game needs me to be out there, I want to be out there.”
Durant added that “the team is better when I’m on the court.” The 37-year-old averaged 36.4 minutes per night and made 78 starts last season. He also has a $46MM player option for the 2027/28 season, and Stone said Durant repeated at the end of last season “how happy he is here” and that he wants to stay in Houston.
Amen Thompson is taking a different kind of motivation into the new season. He said he didn’t deserve a place on one of the NBA’s All-Defensive teams last year, but that omission is pushing him to improve. He also has an extra jolt from watching his twin brother, Pistons wing Ausar Thompson, earn a spot on the All-Defensive first team.
In Other News...
Fred VanVleet Gives Rockets Fans Reason For Early Season Hope
Fred VanVleets ramp-up has become one of the more important early-season storylines for Houston, and the latest update at media day offered some real optimism. Ime Udoka said the guard is expected to be a full participant this season after progressing to 5-on-5 work, a meaningful sign for a Rockets team that has been looking for stability and creation in the backcourt. The plan, though, is still to handle him carefully as he comes back into the flow of things.
VanVleet said he feels good and is moving in the right direction after missing the entire previous year, adding that he expects to be ready by the start of the season. The Rockets are counting on his return to sharpen the offense and ease some of the pressure on Amen Thompson, while also opening the door for more functional lineups alongside Kevin Durant. The bigger question now is how quickly VanVleet can get all the way back into game shape once the season begins. [Read more 🡒]
Kevin Durant Is Already Creating A Real Rockets Tension Point
Kevin Durants first appearance at Rockets media day already surfaced one of the teams most delicate early-season questions: how much is too much for a player Houston plans to lean on heavily, but also has every reason to protect. The Rockets are trying to strike the right balance with a star who has logged major regular-season minutes in the past and is coming off a recent injury, while also knowing his value is greatest when hes available for the games that matter most.
Durant, though, does not sound eager to treat his workload like a preset formula. He made clear hes open to playing fewer minutes in the right game state, but Houstons approach will have to account for his preference against blanket limitations. For a team trying to maximize both his impact and his health, that creates an immediate tension point worth watching as camp unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Rockets Have Two Wings Fighting To Prove They Fit Udokas Plan
The Rockets have taken a long look at the margins of the roster this summer, and two 6-foot-6 wings are trying to turn that attention into a real role in Ime Udokas system. Julian Phillips arrived as a free agent after a winding start to his career, while Isaiah Crawford is back in the mix after spending time with Houston last year and showing enough in the G League to stay on the radar. Both fit the type of versatile, defense-first profile that can matter in a rotation built around size and pressure.
Phillips has already made his calling card on the defensive end, but his NBA offense has been a work in progress, which makes every camp rep matter as he tries to prove he can be more than a specialist. Crawfords path is a little different, with limited NBA minutes but a track record that suggests there is still something for Houston to see if the shot, the energy and the activity translate against bigger competition. For a team that likes competition at the end of the bench, this is the kind of battle worth watching. [Read more 🡒]