NBA Analyst Predicts Slight Improvement For Houston Rockets Next Season

The NBA analyst believes the Houston Rockets will see a slight win-total increase.

Mar 21, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka (center) talks with Houston Rockets guards Fred VanVleet (5) and Jalen Green (4) during the fourth quarter against the Chicago Bulls at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports / Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

What kind of season are the Houston Rockets in for during the 2024-25 campaign? The only real roster change they made was the addition of Reed Sheppard, who will elevate the team's play in a sixth man role.

However, a bulk of their contributors outside of Fred VanVleet and Alperen Sengun are young, rising prospects who should see improvement during next season. With this, some improvement should be expected.

Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey predicted win-loss totals for every NBA team following the league-wide schedule release. Bailey predicted a 44-38 winning season in Houston.

"One of last season's breakouts, the Houston Rockets smashed their 2023-24 over-under by nine wins," Bailey wrote. "And in 2024-25, on top of bringing back a loaded young core that includes Alperen Şengün, Jabari Smith Jr., Jalen Green, Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore, Houston has a bona fide Rookie of the Year contender in Reed Sheppard."

The Rockets' young core makes their ability to compete next season super intruiging. They've begun to build an identity and culture in Houston, and having VanVleet and Brooks to anchor the team as veterans means improvement from the young core can make a huge impact.

"On internal development alone, a three-win improvement almost seems like an overly conservative estimate for this group. But here again, we're dealing with the Western Conference," Bailey continued. "The Rockets could look meaningfully better in 2024-25 and still finish with a win total in the high 30s. Improvement in the NBA isn't always linear, particularly in terms of winning percentage."

Bailey takes a great angle on the landscape of the Western Conference. Finishing with 44 wins while showing signs of incredible improvement could be enough to signal to the Rockets that the right buttons are being pressed.

For Houston, visible improvement would be incredible, but the club still has to pick a direction moving forward, and consolidating young talent will be key in doing so.

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