The Houston Rockets have advanced to the Playoffs for the first time in five years. Amid semester-end chaos, the NBA Playoffs offer the perfect distraction—a niche opportunity to destress.
Rockets have been paired against their Western Conference rival Golden State Warriors.
The Playoffs brings back a sour memory for die-hard Rockets fans. In the 2018 Western Conference Finals, the familiar foes danced. Golden State got the upper hand in Game 7.
This season’s advancement marks a long-awaited return to the postseason for Houston.
The team has spent the last few seasons in rebuild mode.
After years of falling just short against the Warriors, earlier this season, the Rockets finally snapped their several-years-long, 14-game losing streak. Things are different this time.
The Rockets are no longer the underdog. They are even heavily favored to hand Stephen Curry and the Warriors an early ticket to the off-season.
The Rockets are led by a young core of Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun and Jabari Smith Jr. All of whom experienced their first taste of the Playoffs in a Game 1 loss at the Toyota Center on Sunday, April 20.
“The lights were bright, the crowd was here, the court looked huge,” said Green.
While the Playoffs set a new stage for some, it’s familiar territory for second-year head coach Ime Udoka.
Udoka joined Houston after leading the Boston Celtics to the 2022 NBA Finals.
Under Udoka, the Rockets have shown continuous growth. They stepped into this year’s postseason as the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, with a record of 51-30.
The resilience wrung out by Udoka has since paid off in Game 2. Rockets evened the series to 1-1 after a break-out performance by Green.
The Rockets have their work cut out for them.
The Warriors, under head coach Steve Kerr, are no strangers to the bright lights of playoff basketball. Led by four-time NBA Champions Curry and Draymond Green the team is a powerhouse.
Newly added, six-time All-Star Jimmy “Playoff Jimmy” Butler also brings a gritty edge and postseason pedigree to the Golden State squad.
The series moves to San Francisco for Game 3.
Did you know? While the series played out in Houston, the No. 7 seed Golden State Warriors made use of the University of Houston’s very own Guy V. Lewis Development Center for practice.
Tip-off is set for Saturday, April 26 inside the Chase Center at 7:30 p.m. The game will air nationally on ABC.
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