Houston Rockets' Ime Udoka: Early Coach of the Year Candidate?

Ime Udoka appears to have made a huge impact early for the Houston Rockets.

The Houston Rockets are making tremendous strides three weeks into the 2023-24 season.

After winning just 22 games all of last season, the Rockets have already notched five victories with the expectation of exceeding that total way before the end of the season. There are many reasons behind this, but the one at the top of the list has to be coach Ime Udoka.

Far different from his predecessor Stephen Silas, Udoka has established a culture of accountability on and off the court, taking care of the basketball on the offensive end and building the core on defense. 

Udoka also has lieutenants to help carry out the vision of the team; he was a leading voice in helping sign Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks and Jeff Green to be veteran presences for a young Rockets team.

Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka during the game against the Charlotte Hornets at Toyota Center / Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Friday's win against the New Orleans Pelicans saw this vision come into fruition. They were led by their young core players Jalen Green and Alperen Şengün. But Houston couldn't have won the game without VanVleet's clutch buckets, Brooks' defensive intensity and Green's job defending Zion Williamson in the final minutes.

Two days later, the Rockets would extend their winning streak to six after defeating the reigning NBA champions in the Denver Nuggets. Şengün's improvements under Udoka led to the third-year big man dueling with Nikola Jokic, who finished the game with 36 points, 21 rebounds and 11 assists.   

Everyone deserves credit for the attempt to right the ship, but perhaps no one should receive more than Udoka, who is setting the tone from the start and impacting the leadership from the veterans and the team's young roster.