Kevin Durant may be 38 when the season opens, but for now the Rockets still look like his team.
That’s the view from one side of the Rockets On SI staff question, and it starts with the simplest argument in the room: Durant remains too good on offense to bump aside just yet. Last season, he put up 26 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game while also adding nearly a steal and a block. He shot 41% from three and 52 % from the field, production that still lands squarely in elite territory.
The case for Durant is built on more than just numbers. He can score from anywhere, and he doesn’t need to dominate the ball on every possession to make himself felt.
Until his game shows a clear drop-off, it’s hard to choose anyone else over him. The belief here is that Durant will hold onto the top spot for at least one more season.
But there’s another path the Rockets could take, and it runs through Amen Thompson.
Thompson is entering his fourth year, and the idea is that his rise could be the one that changes Houston’s hierarchy by season’s end. The appeal is obvious: his defense already ranks among the best in the league, and having Fred VanVleet back in the fold should give Thompson more chances to work off the ball and attack downhill. That power off the dribble is the trait that can keep opening the rest of his offensive game.
For that version of Houston to show up, Thompson would need to keep making the kind of leap that turns promise into production. The expectation from one staff view is that he’ll do exactly that and finish the season as the Rockets’ best player, especially if the team keeps putting him in the right spots to use his strengths.
Alperen Sengun belongs in the conversation too. He’s already a two-time All-Star at age 23 and one of the most talented centers in the league. There’s no shortage of belief in his offensive ability, and he’s part of the group that gives Houston a real chance to have multiple candidates for the top spot.
Still, the tougher part for Sengun is the defensive end, and one staff view suggests that Thompson’s growth is more likely to outpace Sengun’s improvement there. That’s why the prediction tilts toward Thompson rather than Sengun as the player most likely to finish the year at the top of the Rockets’ pecking order.
Even so, the respect for Durant runs through all of it. His first season in Houston looked a lot like the rest of his career: efficient, productive and still elite. His leadership may need work, but the offense does not, and there’s little sign that he’s slowing down enough to lose his spot right away.
So the Rockets have three names in the mix - Durant, Thompson and Sengun - and each can make a case. But the split opinion is clear: one side says Durant keeps the crown for another year, while another believes Thompson’s two-way leap will carry him to the top by season’s end.
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