NBA Power Rankings: Rockets Struggle With Tough Schedule

The Houston Rockets are the league's worst team at 2-11. But do they get a reprieve given their tough schedule?

Jeremy Brener | Nov 14, 2022

The Houston Rockets host the Los Angeles Clippers tonight at the Toyota Center for the second time this season.

It's also only the fourth time the Rockets will play at home in 14 games this year, the fewest in the NBA this season.

The Rockets just completed a four-game road trip that saw them beat the Orlando Magic, but lose to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Toronto Raptors and New Orleans Pelicans.

In each of the losses, the Rockets had opportunities to play better, but they were ultimately thwarted by better teams who played more consistently. Maybe if the Rockets found some rhythm at home, they could turn that into some wins.

The team's difficult schedule has given them some reprieve in this week's power rankings from The Athletic, moving them up from No. 30 to No. 28.

"I don’t think we have to make too much out of the Rockets losing because that’s the design of this team," The Athletic writes. "They’ve had one of the toughest schedules in the NBA, which compounds the losses and the blowout losses. Just want to see them get Jalen Green on track and help Jabari Smith Jr. find some easy buckets to get his confidence going."

This week, the Rockets play the Clippers (Mon.), Dallas Mavericks (Wed.), Indiana Pacers (Fri.) and Golden State Warriors (Sun.).

You can follow Jeremy Brener on Twitter @JeremyBrener.

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Published Nov 14, 2022

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.