Rockets GM Rafael Stone: 'Hopefully This Group of Players Takes Another Step Forward'

The Rockets have one of the deepest rosters in the league. At an average age of 26.2, they are bound to be a team to contend in the future.

Oct 20, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green (4) with Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka talking during a timeout against the Miami Heat during a preseason game at Toyota Center. /Michael Wyke/Associated Press/ /

NBA media day was today, and the majority of the players set the expectation of making the playoffs for the Houston Rockets. Being so young, with the oldest player in the "Core 7" being 23, this Rockets roster has high expectations for themselves. General Manager Rafael Stone sees the potential that the team is talking about.

"Hopefully this group of players take another step forward," said the Rockets GM. "At least the core of what we have can stay together for a long time and be very successful."

If this young core does develop and stick together, the future will be very bright in Houston.

The Rockets are a team primarily built through the draft. As the roster shuffled through media interviews on Monday, several players looked much stronger, with Amen Thompson and Jabari Smith Jr. standing out in that respect. This team looks to keep improving, and this may be the start.

Developing under Coach Ime Udoka and his staff is perfect for this young squad. Udoka is a nonsense coach, who is serious about winning which was clear in his first season with the Rockets.

The players sounded very confident today about getting to the playoffs when speaking to the media. Fred VanVleet was the first player to speak, as he sounded really confident about the team's winning capabilities in general.

"We can beat anybody on any given night," the veteran point guard said. "It's got to be the playoffs for us." Jalen Green followed later during media day and said, "The main goal is the playoffs right now, that's what the focus is."

Overall, the Rockets' media day went as expected. Quite a bit of talk has been surrounding the team about whether they will be a Play-In or a playoff team, or even a lottery team yet again. The players seemed to be confident about this season.

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