Latest Power Rankings See Rockets Jump to Tenth in West

Could this be a sign?

Mar 10, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) and forward Jabari Smith Jr. (10) stand on the court during the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

After years of doom and gloom, the Houston Rockets are finally on the come up. Year one of the Ime Udoka era was much more successful than anyone would've imagined, as the franchise went 41-41 in 2023-24, after winning just 59 games combined in the prior three seasons.

And although the team didn't make any significant offseason additions- outside of drafting Reed Sheppard- they didn't need to. Running it back was arguably the right move, based on how they fared last season.

But making the playoffs will be a tall order, based on the landscape of the Western Conference. The Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Pelicans, and Dallas Mavericks all made major offseason acquisitions and the Memphis Grizzlies will be much better with the return of Ja Morant.

However, based on the latest power rankings by FanSided's Christopher Kline, the Rockets will make the play-in tournament, as Kline has the Rockets as the 10th-best team in the West. His reasoning is below.

"I am extremely bullish on this Rockets team. Perhaps with a bit of good luck, it's easy to imagine the Rockets sneaking into the playoffs. Ime Udoka is one heck of a coach and there just aren't many teams who can match the Rockets' depth of talent at full strength. Reed Sheppard should be an immediate impact presence as a rookie, Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore are due for sophomore leaps, and Alperen Sengun is back to remind us of how dominant he was before the injury a season ago."

The full list is below.

1. Oklahoma City Thunder
2. Denver Nuggets
3. Dallas Mavericks
4. Minnesota Timberwolves
5. Memphis Grizzlies
6. Phoenix Suns
7. Los Angeles Clippers
8. New Orleans Pelicans
9. Golden State Warriors
10. Houston Rockets
11. Sacramento Kings
12. Los Angeles Lakers
13. San Antonio Spurs
14. Utah Jazz
15. Portland Trail Blazers

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