Ime Udoka saved the best highlights for last.
After nearly 45 minutes of in-depth Houston Rockets analysis on his pre-training-camp PowerPoint presentation, with players soaking in their coach’s messages like students in a basketball classroom inside the team’s practice facility, the montage of mayhem began.
First, it was the clip of Udoka telling LeBron James and his Lakers to “stop whining like little b—-” back on Dec. 2, 2023, when the then-first-year Rockets coach started a NSFW argument with one of the greatest players of all time that led to Udoka’s ejection. Then came the dust-up in Milwaukee on Dec. 17, 2023, when resident Rockets villain Dillon Brooks and Udoka were ejected in the final minute for their aggressive dispute of a late call. The tape of 15 separate altercations from their previous season kept running — and entertaining them all — from there.
“It’s his personality,” Rockets guard Fred VanVleet said of the presentation and Udoka’s role in it. “He’s a confrontational guy, a fighter, so it was funny to watch them all in order and see the build up. But it’s about building that identity as a group and as a team. We’re built on toughness and just not taking any s— from anybody.”
The fisticuffs weren’t the featured part of the film, though. Udoka had gone into great detail about the defensive improvements that had been made, how the Rockets went from among the league’s worst in every relevant category before his arrival to “top six,” Udoka said, in his rookie Rockets campaign.
The message, in essence, was that they needed to get even better on that end if they were going to become a perennial playoff contender. But to get there, it would require a commitment to the motto Udoka constantly preaches — “No friends on the floor” — and that was on full display during those fiery moments.
“We started to look at the frequency and the dates (of the incidents), and there was something every week from January on,” Udoka told The Athletic recently. “The broadcasters would say, ‘Here goes another dust-up with Houston. It’s becoming an every game thing now.’ So that mentality had changed. And I told the guys, ‘You have to earn the respect of the league and not take a backseat to anybody.’”
Meet the all-gas, no-brakes Rockets, this modern-day version of the “Bad Boys” Pistons that is as feisty and unapologetic a team as the league has seen in quite some time.
After breaking a 15-game losing streak to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday in dramatic form and thus advancing to an NBA Cup semifinal matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday in Las Vegas, the Rockets are tied with the Memphis Grizzlies for the second-best record in the Western Conference (17-8). As was the case in Udoka’s first head-coaching stop, when he turned the 2021-22 Boston Celtics around during his one season there before his his unceremonious exit, his Rockets are doing it with defense.
And while they’re not in the driver’s seat just yet, they’re barreling down the road in the right direction — while begging for all the smoke along the way.
When Udoka and Rockets general manager Rafael Stone started revamping the Rockets’ roster two summers ago, they had a crucial question to answer that would set the tone for what came next: Was it time for a James Harden reunion?
The legendary former Rocket had made it known he was interested in a Houston return, and the two sides even held a meeting that included Harden, his representation and Udoka to discuss that very possibility. If Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta wanted the most obvious way to return to relevance, this was it.
Udoka had coached Harden as an assistant during their time together with the Brooklyn Nets and coached against him for years in San Antonio, Philadelphia and Boston. There was great respect for Harden and his game, but it just wasn’t the right fit. If the plan was to build a defensive juggernaut with a balanced offense — and it was — then adding a ball-dominant, all-time great who never has been known for defense wasn’t the way to go.
“My main thing for us was, ‘What fits best with our young guys to continue to grow?’” Udoka said. “But also, out of respect for James, (I told him), ‘You’re at the stage where you want to win, and we’re not there yet.’ And it wasn’t just James. I had five, six veteran guys who went to championship-level teams who wanted to come (that summer), and I said the same thing to all of them.
“They all went to other places, but they had Golden State, Milwaukee, Phoenix and all these teams (wanting them) to come. But I told them, ‘We’re not there. Go try to win a championship.’ And so, it’s just about fit and where we’re at. … Our (young) guys needed the reps.”
Yet it was Udoka’s desire to change the Rockets’ culture on the defensive side of the ball, and to do it with a group that was young enough to have a long runway, that would ultimately drive the Rockets’ calculus. Defense was Udoka’s primary strength during his playing days, when he went undrafted out of Portland State before spending parts of seven seasons in the NBA and playing overseas.
Those beliefs were buoyed during his first coaching job alongside the Spurs’ Gregg Popovich from 2012 to 2019, then put into action more than ever before when he led Boston to the NBA Finals in 2022 (the Celtics’ defense went from 13th in defensive rating the year before his hiring to No. 1). And for all the success the Harden/Mike D’Antoni-led Rockets enjoyed, they were never known as the defense-first, intimidating types.
Even beyond Udoka’s vision for the defense, Rockets officials were concerned the development of their two most important young players — big man Alperen Şengün and guard Jalen Green — would be stymied if they added veteran standouts who weren’t truly compatible with their young core. Enter veteran guards VanVleet and Brooks, who signed that summer and shined in their respective roles as Houston improved from 22 wins to 41.
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Udoka had a soft spot for VanVleet, in part because of the similarities in their stories. Both were undrafted before making it in the NBA, with VanVleet going on to become an All-Star and a champion (with the 2018-19 Toronto Raptors). Brooks’ playing style and prickly personality, made (in)famous during his Grizzlies tenure, also were perfect for what Udoka had in mind.
“Fred had played on and off the ball,” Udoka said. “He’s been with Kawhi (Leonard), been with DeMar (DeRozan), been with (Pascal) Siakam. He’s had to do both. And so for Jalen to grow and Alpie to grow, and the other guys, I felt Fred was a better fit. …They (both) fit in seamlessly with what I was trying to do, and they had that defensive mentality that would rub off on our guys on a nightly basis.”
The ripple effect has been real.
After finishing no higher than 27th in defensive rating during three seasons under former coach Stephen Silas, when the rebuild was in full effect as they won just 59 times in 222 tries, Udoka’s Rockets team that was 10th in defense last season is now second. Considering the origin story of Udoka’s hiring, how Fertitta and Stone decided to prioritize a defensive mindset above all else in their process, they couldn’t ask for much more than this.
“When we were bringing Ime in, it wasn’t ‘best coach available,’” said Stone, the 52-year-old who has been with the organization since 2005 and was elevated to general manager in October 2020. “It was like, ‘We need somebody who can really impact defense for us.’ I do think (Udoka) was the best coach available, so that ended up being nice, but that was a big focal area for us in terms of the type of coach we were going to hire.”
Fast forward to Wednesday night, and it was the Warriors feeling Houston’s defensive dominance first-hand when Golden State tied its season-low scoring while seeing its streak of 15 consecutive wins over Houston come to an end. The first quarter was an absolute clinic, with the Rockets forcing six turnovers while holding Golden State to just 18 points.
On the TNT broadcast, there was a mention of how it seemed at times as if Houston had six or seven defenders on the floor. And while they haven’t yet pulled off that sort of trick, they do have a bevy of versatile, athletic and relentless options at their disposal.
VanVleet, Brooks and third-year big man Jabari Smith Jr. (the third pick in 2022) are the defensive leaders in the starting lineup, with Şengün (18.8 points, 10.6 rebounds, 5.3 assists per game) and Green (19.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists) the featured offensive threats. VanVleet (15.6 points, 5.9 assists) and Brooks (12.6 points) are key contributors on that end as well.
It’s the bench tandem of swingman Amen Thompson (fourth pick in 2023) and forward Tari Eason (17th pick in 2022), though, that has been so entertaining on the defensive end that they even earned a nickname from fans — “The Terror Twins” — for their ability to wreck opposing offenses together.
“The foundation was laid last year,” Udoka said. “But I felt we could take another step this year. For one thing, there was the health. Getting Amen back early (who missed more than a month with a sprained left ankle before returning on Dec. 5). Tari was out for most of the year (last season, when he played just 22 games because of a stress reaction in his lower left leg), adding a guy like (veteran center) Steven Adams, and then all the guys taking a leap within their second year.
“We saw growth within all our guys last year,” Udoka continued. “And so to come into this year with our second year of them not having to learn the schemes or terminology and what we’re expecting, you expect it to take somewhat of a jump.”
To hear the Rockets locker-room leaders tell it, it’s Udoka’s direct nature — and direction — that makes it all work. If you ever see him covering his mouth for the cameras during a break in the action, he’s likely ripping a Rockets player for a defensive mistake that simply can’t be tolerated. His candor can be caustic during postgame news conferences, too, like the Dec. 5 session in San Francisco where he said his team looked “soft or scared” after a 99-93 loss to the Warriors that would be avenged just six days later.
“It’s very rare in the NBA,” VanVleet said. “Most coaches have to dance around the egos and the fragile personalities that the NBA can bring. We’re all high-strung, emotional, egotistical, highly paid guys, so to have a coach who really just says it straight and blunt is refreshing for me, honestly. That’s the way I grew up, and that’s the way I’ve always had most of my coaches throughout my life before the NBA.
“For a young team, it’s amazing because it just sets a good … foundation for guys to grow and get better. But I would say he earns that right too. … He’s not just motherf—ing guys for no reason. He earns that relationship and that trust as a leader every day leading the group, leading the coaches, leading the franchise.”
Jeff Green, who worked with Udoka while with the Nets and signed a two-year deal with Houston in 2023, was no stranger to his style.
“He wants guys that are going to play hard,” the 38-year-old forward said. “And if you don’t, you sit down. I mean, point-blank. It’s that simple. … Guys know that, and they don’t want to get out of the game. So in order for that to happen, you have to change your approach. You have to change your ways to the game. And you have to be Houston Rockets first — no friends on the floor. And Coach Ime lives by that.”
For teams on the rise, there’s no better combination of circumstances than to be winning and still have a cupboard full of promising young players and assets. That’s a luxury these Rockets are enjoying.
Yet while they spent the months heading into last season’s trade deadline looking for another star, team sources say that’s not the case heading into the Feb. 6 deadline. Not only did they secure extensions with Jalen Green (three years, $106 million) and Şengün (five years, $185 million), but the early success has only bolstered the internal belief that this group is worth analyzing from now until the summertime.
As it pertains to the Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler, who is known to be available and reportedly has the Rockets on his list of preferred destinations, team sources say it’s highly unlikely they’ll pursue the 35-year-old, six-time All-Star from nearby Tomball, Texas. As was the case with Harden, age is an undeniable factor in the calculus. And while Butler is an elite two-way player who could turn these Rockets into title contenders immediately, it appears there’s still an aversion to the prospect of adding any star in his mid-to-late 30s.
From Udoka’s vantage point, now is the time to make the most of what they already have — especially when it comes to Şengün and Green. While some have wondered if they’re a poor fit, with Green at his best playing up-tempo and Şengün more prone to slow it down and play out of the post, Udoka sees it as a best-of-both-worlds scenario.
“I love balance,” said Udoka, whose offense is ranked 15th and boasts seven players who average at least 11 points per game. “I love a team that can play with pace, have a post option, have guards that can handle and create, offensive rebound. And so for me, I think that just makes you a much more dangerous team.”
The goal from here, of course, is to build on this early momentum and be a true contender by the time the postseason rolls around.
“If we get down to the stretch (run) and we’re in playoff mode and we can play our game, we’re gonna be a f—ing hell of a team to beat,” VanVleet said. “Nobody’s really gonna want to see us coming. We’re just laying that groundwork to be one of those teams coming down the stretch, and you’ve got to (remember) what these guys were before we got here. To be able to turn it around that quick, Coach definitely deserves a lot of credit for that.”
Not long before Houston tipped off against the Kings in Sacramento on Dec. 3, as Stone and this reporter shared a laugh about the preseason PowerPoint that spoke volumes about Udoka’s intense personality, the team’s front-office head unknowingly jinxed the night ahead.
“It’s been pretty quiet this year,” he said.
A few hours later, after a no-call against Şengün that infuriated Udoka, he would be ejected for his profanity-laced pursuit of official John Goble late in the loss. Şengün was tossed too. Eason, who heard a heckler on his way off the floor, even started to run up a nearby ramp toward the stands before he was stopped by security. Udoka kept the chaos coming in his postgame news conference, relaying how he’d told Goble to “get some f—ing glasses.” League fines ensued for all.
But Stone, when asked about the events of that evening days later, was unbothered. Amused, even.
Just another day with these rowdy Rockets.
“I’m 100 percent comfortable with everything he’s said and done,” Stone said. “It’s understood. He ain’t gonna back up. And I don’t want him to. We all collectively deal with the consequences. But the consequences of backing up, I think, are a lot worse. So we’re going to be what we’re going to be about, the things we’re going to be about, and we’re going to stand our ground organizationally.
“Player by player, coach by coach, front-office guy, ownership — everybody. If we say we’re gonna do something, we’re gonna do it. And if you’re trying to push us around, that’s not going to happen.”
(Illustration: Meech Robinson / The Athletic; top photos: Darren Carroll / Getty Images)
