Their 2023-24 NBA season exceeded expectations, and this off-season the Houston Rockets chose against any major roster additions. The Rockets will embark on the 2024-25 campaign with much of the same group as last year. Alperen Şengün is expected to morph into an excellent center, and the youthful core surrounded by a few seasoned veterans will seek playoff contention in a crowded west.
Houston Rockets Off-Season: A Review To Date
A Quiet Rockets Off-Season isn’t a Bad Thing
The Houston Rockets were expected to pursue a significant trade or free agent this off-season. Considering last summer’s addition of Fred VaVleet, a big move would have followed suit. One of the youngest and most exciting teams to watch in the NBA, the Rockets overachieved last year, winning 41 games and barely missing a chance to compete in a play-in game against the Golden State Warriors. Until now, Houston has not had any major wheelings or dealings. Instead, the franchise has stood pat with its young talent and core—the group that surprised many around the league last season. A quiet off-season doesn’t necessarily spell doom and gloom for the Rockets. The organization seems content with its current roster. Considering what they accomplished last season, perhaps laying low this summer is the right play.
Acquiring Steven Adams from Memphis at the trade deadline last year was a great move for the Rockets and their most recent addition that can have an immediate impact. Adams is a powerful, dependable big man, a veteran, and one of the most well-liked guys in the league. Pairing him up alongside Alperen Şengün should benefit the talented Turkish center. Şengün has already shown glimpses that he can dominate the paint, and his potential is still forming.
The Rockets also made a smart draft pick in Reed Sheppard this off-season. Sheppard was on many NBA teams’ draft boards, but Houston picked him up with the third overall pick. Sheppard has already been projected to be in the NBA Rookie of the Year conversation, so the Rockets might have hit a home run with the young man out of Kentucky this off-season.
Key Player Departures
The Rockets only lost two players this off-season—Reggie Bullock and Boban Marjanović. Why teams keep letting the NBA’s best television commercial star go is a question mark. He’s an outstanding glue guy with a team-first attitude like none other. Both he and Bullock are still free agents.
Key Player Acquisitions
In addition to drafting Reed Sheppard, who will be on the roster on opening day, the Rockets signed journeyman free agent Aaron Holiday.
Houston also took on undrafted rookies N’Faly Dante from Oregon and Jack McVeigh from Australia. Both players signed on two-way contracts and will play for Houston’s affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the G-League.
Steven Adams might still be Houston’s best overall addition since signing VanVleet last summer. Adams has not yet suited up for Houston due to his season-ending knee surgery last November, which kept him off the floor post-trade.
From Overachievers to Playoff Contenders
The NBA Western Conference is a gauntlet, with seeds one through 11 fiercely competitive and very few games apart in the wins/loss columns. Last year’s standings are a testament to this, with 46 wins securing the last play-in spot. The West is so competitive that teams cannot afford to take nights off or fall into injury-laden circumstances.
The Rockets played above expectations last season, crossing the 40-win mark but falling one seed shy of the play-in. However, despite a quiet off-season, the Rockets are in a good position to contend this year. Ime Udoka is an excellent coach who knows how to motivate his players while coaching them hard at the same time. This could be the year the Rockets stay in the chase and surpass their overachieving status. If they hit that mark, it would be the first time since Russell Westbrook and James Harden donned Rockets jerseys in 2020.
