“Houston addressed the glaring hole on its roster — a go-to guy — by trading for future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant,” ESPN’s Tim MacMahon writes.
The 2024-25 Houston Rockets finished at 52-30 and at No. 2 in the Western Conference standings, even with clear limitations when it came to halfcourt offense.
The 2025-26 Rockets will pair many of the same players with Kevin Durant, a perennial All-Star and one of the best scorers in NBA history.
Thus, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that ESPN’s “summer forecast” panel — voted on by its NBA reporters, editors, and analysts — isn’t expecting any decline.
In its initial standings and records projections, ESPN has the Rockets at 54-28 and (again) No. 2 in the West. Tim MacMahon explains:
The Rockets were a surprise last season, soaring to the West’s second seed before bowing out in the first round of the playoffs. Houston addressed the glaring hole on its roster — a go-to guy — by trading for future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant without compromising hopes of having a long runway as a contender.
Between Durant, Fred VanVleet, Dorian Finney-Smith, Steven Adams, and Clint Capela, it’s worth noting that Houston’s potential playing rotation now features as many as five players who are 31 years old or older.
So, even though a two-game bump might appear modest at first glance — at least relative to the offseason praise — it’s possible that load management could be a factor in the regular season. Thus, the full extent of Houston’s upgrades might not be visible until the 2026 playoffs.
As defending NBA champions, ESPN is projecting the Oklahoma City Thunder at 64-18 and No. 1 in the West. While their margin relative to the second-seeded Rockets is at 10 games, that’s actually down from 16 last season.
Led by perennial Most Valuable Player (MVP) frontrunner Nikola Jokic, ESPN projects the Denver Nuggets (53-29) at No. 3 in the West, one game behind Houston.
Should the Rockets finish at No. 2, they would again open the playoffs by facing the winner of a play-in tournament game between the No. 7 and No. 8 teams in the final standings. That could bring a playoff rematch against the Warriors, as ESPN is projecting Golden State (48-34) and the Dallas Mavericks (44-38) to finish in those seventh and eighth spots, respectively.