The Rockets’ 2026-27 schedule is out, and the opener comes Oct. 21 at home against the Dallas Mavericks. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m., which will be the new standard start time for home games after more than a decade of 7:00 starts.
That opening night should bring back Fred VanVleet and Kyrie Irving, but the more intriguing matchups are spread across the rest of the slate. There are five games that stand out right away.
The first is an early test against San Antonio. A year ago, the Rockets were being viewed ahead of the Spurs after finishing second in the West in 2025 and trading for Kevin Durant.
Now the setup is flipped, with San Antonio coming off a 60-win season and an NBA Finals appearance. Houston gets a quick chance to answer.
That one carries extra weight because the Rockets went 1-3 against the Spurs last season, and two of those losses were rough ones. On Jan. 28 at Toyota Center, they gave away a 16-point second-half lead and sputtered offensively in a 111-99 defeat. Then on March 8 in San Antonio, they were outclassed in a 145-120 loss.
It’s also a game with individual storylines all over it. Alperen Sengun has had the upper hand against Victor Wembanyama before, including a career-high 45 points on March 4, 2024.
The game also features the third and fourth picks in the 2024 draft, Reed Sheppard and Stephon Castle. Castle, taken one spot after Sheppard, has been the better player through their first two NBA seasons, and Sheppard will get an early shot to show he belongs on the floor with his draft class’ Rookie of the Year.
The Rockets’ first look at Minnesota is another one to watch. The Wolves reshaped their roster by moving on from Julius Randle and Naz Reid and bringing in LaMelo Ball, which gives their offense a different feel immediately. Anthony Edwards has been a problem for Houston for a while, averaging 27 points on 45% shooting in 18 career games against the Rockets, though he managed just 22 points in their only meeting last season.
Then there’s Golden State, where the energy always seems to spike. Tari Eason has never been subtle about how he feels about the Warriors, and his mom has even gotten into social media back-and-forths with Draymond.
Eason also wore a “Warriors, come out to play” shirt on the bench in 2024. Watching Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant share the floor is its own draw, and the matchup between Sengun and Green brings another layer with all of Green’s physicality and gamesmanship.
A Rockets-Warriors game at Toyota Center has a different feel altogether. The building just seems louder, the crowd a little more dialed in than on an ordinary night.
The Rockets will also see Phoenix again, but this one comes with a twist: it will be Jalen Green’s first game at Toyota Center since being traded to the Suns last summer. He struggled in the lone matchup against Houston last season, and that game was tight throughout. Now he returns to the arena he called home for four seasons, and he’ll have plenty to prove.
Dillon Brooks against former teammates is always worth the price of admission, too. He brings out the edge in everyone, and the energy tends to stay competitive rather than personal. It’s also a reminder of how much he helped shape the Rockets’ culture during his two seasons there.
There’s also the Joel Embiid matchup. Sengun and Embiid have faced each other only four times in five seasons, and just twice over the last three.
Embiid has controlled those meetings, averaging 33.8 points to Sengun’s 13.0. He scored 41 against Houston in 2024 and posted a 32-point, 15-rebound, 10-assist triple-double when the teams met last season.
Two more games stand out for very different reasons. The Rockets will get their first crack at LeBron James after he knocked them out of the playoffs last season, and Ime Udoka gets a reunion with Jaylen Brown, whom he coached in Boston.
The other one I’m most curious about is Houston’s first look at the explosive backcourt of Tyrese Maxey and V.J. Edgecombe.
In Other News...
Spurs Backcourt Battle Could Shape Wembanyamas Next Step
The Spurs backcourt picture is starting to come into focus as the team heads toward next season, and the decision at point guard could say plenty about how San Antonio wants to accelerate Victor Wembanyamas growth. DeAaron Fox is still positioned as the starter, giving the Spurs a proven lead guard with a major role on the books, while Dylan Harper arrives as the kind of young talent that naturally tempts fans to imagine a faster handoff.
Fox also spent the summer building chemistry with Wembanyama, a development that matters for a team trying to make the game easier for its franchise centerpiece. Harper remains an intriguing part of the long-term plan, but the expectation is that he will begin his Spurs run in a reserve role for at least another season, leaving the staff to balance present-day stability with the appeal of another high-upside creator waiting in the wings. [Read more 🡒]
Stephon Castle Faces The Spurs Challenge Russell Westbrook Never Solved
Russell Westbrooks retirement closes the book on one of the most explosive careers the league has ever seen, and it also offers a useful measuring stick for the Spurs own young guard room. Stephon Castle is being mentioned in the same breath for good reason: the forceful, downhill style, the willingness to attack the rim, and the kind of all-around pressure that can bend a defense without waiting for a clean look from deep.
Where Castle can separate himself is in the part of the game Westbrook never fully conquered, especially in the postseason. His early shooting gains have been encouraging, and if that progress continues, the Spurs could end up with a player who brings Westbrook-like juice while adding the one layer that made those great runs so hard to sustain. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs Get An Early Test Of How Real This Rise Is
The Spurs are about to find out plenty about themselves before the calendar even turns to November. Their early slate is packed with difficult opponents and relentless travel demands, including 13 back-to-backs and a stretch of four games in six nights before Oct. 31, giving San Antonio very little room to ease into the season. For a team trying to prove its rise is for real, the opening month looks less like a warmup and more like an examination.
Victor Wembanyama enters that grind with a clear individual goal: raise his offensive production and strengthen his case as an MVP-level force after last seasons experience. The good news for San Antonio is that the schedule should offer an immediate measuring stick against some of the Wests stronger teams, the kind of early test that can either accelerate belief or expose how much work still remains. [Read more 🡒]