The Houston Rockets are carrying real championship expectations into the 2026-27 season, but Ralph Sampson says the whole thing comes back to one blunt truth: stay on the floor.
The franchise icon, speaking to Kyle Odegard of Action Network, said Houston’s path to another title hinges on health after an injury-heavy 2025-26 season.
“We'll see if they get healthy. If they do, I think they can compete, but you've got to be healthy,” Sampson said.
That concern wasn’t abstract last year. Fred VanVleet sat out the entire campaign after tearing his ACL before the season even began, and Steven Adams went down after surgery on his left ankle in January and never came back.
Kevin Durant’s season was hit by injuries, too. He missed a February game with a sprained left ankle, then got hit again in the playoffs, first sitting out Game 1 against the Los Angeles Lakers with a bruised right knee and later suffering another left ankle sprain in Game 2. By the end of the six-game series, Durant had appeared in only one game.
The Lakers got through the round despite their own injury problems, with Luka Doncic dealing with a hamstring strain and Austin Reaves playing through an oblique injury.
Houston has responded by adding more veteran help around Durant, Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson. The biggest move came with Marcus Smart, the former Defensive Player of the Year, who signed a two-year, $13 million deal after last season with the Lakers. Smart also put up 14.7 points, 5.5 assists and 2.7 steals per game against Houston in that first-round series.
Sampson sees enough talent on the roster to believe the Rockets can contend. The question, in his view, is whether that group can actually be available when it matters most.
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Rockets Face One Big Question Around Kevin Durants Supporting Cast
Rafael Stone sounded encouraged about where the Rockets are headed, especially with Kevin Durant now in the mix and a young core still forming around him. The GM pointed to the value of that youth, the importance of health when the games matter most, and a roster-building approach that leans into the energy and development already in place. Houstons preseason debut offered an early snapshot of how it might look, with Tari Eason, Fred VanVleet, Alperen Sengun and Durant all making their presence felt in a win over Dallas.
The bigger issue is how all of that comes together once the stakes rise and the supporting cast has to do more than just flash in spurts. Stone has been clear that the organization is trying to build in a way that fits its current personnel, but the real test will be whether the Rockets can keep enough balance around Durant to make a deep playoff run. For now, the optimism is easy to understand. The hard part is still figuring out how far this group can go when the season starts to ask more of everyone around its biggest name. [Read more 🡒]
Kevin Durant Gives The Rockets A Delicate Problem To Solve
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For the Rockets, the delicate part is figuring out how to balance long-term caution with what Durant still brings every night. His role and minutes are going to matter all season, especially with a player of his stature and mileage, and the team now has to sort through how to preserve him without stripping away the rhythm that has defined so much of his game. [Read more 🡒]
Kevin Durant Had An Emotional Reaction To Russell Westbrooks Exit
Russell Westbrooks announcement that his playing career is over landed with plenty of reaction around the league, but Kevin Durants response stood out for how personal it felt. Durant said he was sad to hear the news and spoke glowingly about what Westbrook has meant as a player, a fitting reflection from someone who spent years alongside him and saw firsthand how electric he could be when he was at his best.
Westbrooks exit also leaves open the broader conversation around his place in the game and whether this is truly the final chapter. Zach Randolph suggested Westbrook might still find a way back, and the emotions around the announcement showed how much respect he still commands from former teammates and peers. For Houston fans who watched Durants career unfold from afar and now know how closely these stars have been tied together, it was another reminder of how quickly the league can turn a familiar face into a memory. [Read more 🡒]