The Athletic\u2019s David Aldridge: \u201cRespect to GM Rafael Stone and Houston\u2019s front office for not bowing at the OKC altar and shooting their shot.\u201d<\/p>\n
Finishing up my annual 30-1 offseason rankings with this summer\u2019s big winners – the top 10. You\u2019ll find the defending champs here. You\u2019ll find a happy Joker and Ice Trae and Kawhi and Cooper here. And you\u2019ll find KD and his new team here. In @TheAthletic<\/a>:https:\/\/t.co\/qbOQUKDRpW<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) August 21, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n In a ranking of each NBA team\u2019s 2025 offseason, it should come as no surprise that the Houston Rockets<\/a> come in at the top.<\/p>\n After all, the Rockets made the biggest blockbuster acquisition by bringing in All-Star forward Kevin Durant, and that move has Houston among the top tier of contenders<\/a> for the 2026 NBA Finals.<\/p>\n At The Athletic<\/a>, veteran NBA reporter David Aldridge elaborates:<\/p>\n I\u2019m not wholly sold this is going to be all rainbows and unicorns. Durant is still a great scorer, but like all great scorers, he needs the ball. So, too, do Alperen \u015eeng\u00fcn and Amen Thompson and (Jabari) Smith. Houston\u2019s spent most of the last four years getting the ball to move better. Is isoing KD at the elbow the best way for this team to take the next step?<\/p>\n But, I understand; the Rockets\u2019 offense crashed and burned against the Warriors in the playoffs. This is a gamble a championship-hunting organization takes. Getting DFS (Dorian Finney-Smith) from the Lakers was huge. Respect to GM Rafael Stone and Houston\u2019s front office for not bowing at the OKC altar and shooting their shot.<\/p>\n While a fair concern, it\u2019s worth noting that Durant provides more off-ball value as a shooter than many of his superstar peers. So, the hope is that there will still be sufficient on-ball opportunities for Houston\u2019s emerging offensive talents \u2014most notably, Thompson and Sengun.<\/p>\n Smith is more of a question, but there\u2019s also a case to be made that Durant might be the optimal mentor<\/a> to help the Auburn product further develop his game.<\/p>\n Either way, the talent upgrade is almost certainly worth those risks, and that\u2019s why Aldridge ranks the Rockets at No. 1<\/a> among the 30 offseasons.<\/p>\n