Inside The Rockets

Will Rockets Make Playoffs This Season?

The Houston Rockets are on the precipice of returning to the postseason.

Jeremy Brener

Apr 5, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green (4) drives with the ball as Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) defends during the first quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
Apr 5, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green (4) drives with the ball as Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) defends during the first quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
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The Houston Rockets have gone four straight seasons without reaching the playoffs, one of the longer droughts in franchise history.

However, Bleacher Report writer Eric Pincus believes that the Rockets will end that drought this season and make it to the playoffs.

"The Houston Rockets grew last season from a bottom-feeder to a .500 team. They fell five games short of the 9/10th slotted teams (Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors), but this year will be different," Pincus writes. "It took some time for new head coach Ime Udoka to instill a defensive-minded culture. The team will build upon that this year, initially with continuity. Houston will still need to rely on several young players, including recently drafted Reed Sheppard, but the Rockets will make the play-in tournament and sneak into one of the bottom two playoff seeds."

The Rockets returned nearly their entire roster from a year ago, and that continuity should play into their favor, especially early on into the season. Add in the fact that the team has experience under second-year coach Ime Udoka and are all getting better individually, and the Rockets look like a dangerous team.

The Rockets shouldn't be promised anything because the Western Conference is very stacked, but there is more than a puncher's chance for the team to get its first taste of the postseason together this year.

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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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