Inside The Rockets

Rockets Must Learn to Keep Emotions in Check

The Houston Rockets are sensing a bad pattern.

Jeremy Brener

Dec 29, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets and Miami Heat players break up a fight between Houston Rockets guard Amen Thompson (1) and Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro (14) during the fourth quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images
Dec 29, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets and Miami Heat players break up a fight between Houston Rockets guard Amen Thompson (1) and Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro (14) during the fourth quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images / Erik Williams-Imagn Images
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The Houston Rockets are set to face the consequences after brawling with the Miami Heat late in their loss on Sunday.

The fighting felt like a domino effect of terror for the Rockets that saw Fred VanVleet, Ime Udoka, Ben Sullivan, Jalen Green and Amen Thompson ejected for various reasons.

It all began when VanVleet was called for a five-second violation on an inbounds pass that could have led to a play that would have put the Rockets back in the game. Instead, a call was made that led to VanVleet arguing with a referee who ejected him.

VanVleet came to the Rockets as a veteran presence, and his maturity should be seen as something to look up to for the team. However, getting ejected in that situation wasn't an example of that.

Emotions are part of the game, and VanVleet shouldn't be faulted for feeling his feelings, but it was part of the reason why the Rockets lost.

Udoka's subsequent outburst and Thompson's pulling of Tyler Herro didn't help the situation either.

It's clear that the team needs to look at itself in the mirror and find a way to continue bringing the intenstiy necessary to win whilst also channeling it in a way that doesn't hurt them in the long run.

The Rockets are back in action tomorrow when they take on the Dallas Mavericks.

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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