The Houston Rockets' recent struggles have many calling for Ime Udoka's unlikely ouster.
The 2025-26 Houston Rockets have underwhelmed, by and large, as the team has regressed from last season. Last year's team won 52 games and finished with the second seed in the Western Conference, even without a true superstar.
Naturally, when you add Kevin Durant to the fold, expectations change. Durant was viewed as the missing piece, and understandably, considering what he brings to the table and what Houston has lacked leading up to this season. And considering the level of talent that Houston has assembled over the last five years, it's understandable why this team was given title expectations before the season even started. But it also became clear pretty early on that this team was different than last year's, as they've struggled to beat bottom level teams throughout the season. Even with sizable leads. The Rockets have lost to the Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Pelicans, Portland Trail Blazers and Chicago Bulls all this season, with many of which teams having beaten Houston on several occasions. And they haven't necessarily impressed this season against Western Conference contending teams either. Especially not as of late. We've seen Houston get demolished against the Denver Nuggets on national television. We've also seen the Rockets get obliterated by the San Antonio Spurs on national television. The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Rockets twice, with Lakers coach JJ Redick making the key adjustment to send doubles at Durant, which has proven effective, buy and large, all season. However, Houston’s recent overtime loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves caused many to jump off the ship, if they were still hanging on. The Rockets had a 13-point lead with three minutes remaining in overtime and lost. Following the game, Kevin O'Connor of Yahoo Sports ripped into Rockets coach Ime Udoka, suggesting that Udoka is holding the team back on"The Rockets are never going to win anything, as long as Ime Udoka is their head coach. Ime didn't use his timeouts to rip into his team or get them back on track. And this all happened with the Wolves only having one starter?""This all trickles down when you have a coach who lacks discipline, who's reckless, your team is going to play the same exact way. And it was a problem with Udoka’s teams in Boston, too. The Rockets need a new head coach today, in order to have any chance of accomplishing anything with this young core." This take is yet another example of how things change rather quickly in the NBA. Last offseason, Udoka was regarded as one of the league's best coaches after orchestrating Houston's turnaround from pretenders to contenders. And even given a new contract. Now, less than a year later, he's being regarded as the bottleneck preventing the Rockets from legitimately contending for a title.Anthony Duckett joined Rockets on SI in 2024 and has been covering the NBA professionally since 2019, with stops at FanSided and SB Nation.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Florida Highway Patrol Responds to Missile Scare: Turns Out to Be Hobby RocketsA Florida man's hobby rockets caused a highway scare, prompting a bomb squad response after motorists reported seeing a truck hauling missiles. The 'missiles' were later identified as harmless hobby rockets.
Read more »
Rockets Have Right Mindset Heading into Final Stretch of SeasonWith the Houston Rockets heading into the final stretch of the season, the team is looking forward to a fresh start in the postseason.
Read more »
Bittensor ecosystem tokens' value hits $1.5 billion as TAO rockets 90% in MarchThe ecosystem's smaller tokens are acting as leveraged bets on TAO, with multiple subnet tokens posting 200-400% monthly gains.
Read more »
Rockets Prioritizing Future Over Current Season, Regardless of Postseason ResultsAlthough the 2026 postseason is fast approaching, the Houston Rockets' focus all season long has been on the future.
Read more »
theScore Bet bonus code NPNEWS: Get a bet reset up to $1,000 for Rockets vs. PelicansNew bettors can use theScoreBet bonus code NPNEWS for a bet reset up to $1,000 welcome offer at the sportsbook for Rockets vs. Pelicans.
Read more »
Two Pelicans Stars Questionable to Play vs. RocketsNew Orleans could be without two of its best players tonight.
Read more »