The Houston Rockets’ reward for a breakout season is a first-round date with the resurgent Golden State Warriors in the NBA Playoffs.
Houston, they have a first-round problem—but they may be equipped to handle it.
Thirty years after earning the latter of consecutive championships, the Houston Rockets are back in the NBA Playoffs after a four-year absence. Their reward for securing the second seed is a date with the established champion Golden State Warriors, who are well-equipped for another title run despite falling to the Western Conference Play-In round.
Houston (52-30) is in its best playoff posting since 2018, finishing in the West’s runner-up spot after a breakout campaign. While third overall pick Reed Sheppard made no immediate impact, the Rockets’ homegrown core flourished, as Tari Eason, Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Jabari Smith Jr., and Amen Thompson all formally introduced themselves to the national NBA scene. Houston further flourished with the assistance of valuable veteran additions like Dillon Brooks and Fred VanFleet, paving their way to prime playoff positioning.
The first roadblock is Golden State (48-34), whose continued championship dreams feel realistic again thanks to the in-season arrival of recurring postseason hero Jimmy Butler from Miami. Though it wasn’t enough to avoid Play-In purgatory, the Warriors posted a 23-9 record after adding Butler to the Finals-seeking fold next to Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. With leftovers like Moses Moody, Gary Payton II, and Brandon Podziemski filling in vacated roles (i.e. that of Dallas-bound Klay Thompson), the Warriors continue to be a dangerous Western threat. Golden State disposed of any Play-In drama by defeating the Memphis Grizzlies 121-116 in the opening game of the four-team set.
Only adding to Houston’s plight is the fact that the modern Warriors have had their number in the playoffs: Golden State has won all four spring get-togethers since 2015—and each prior victory led to a visit to the NBA Finals.
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Who: (2) Houston Rockets vs. (7) Golden State WarriorsWhat: NBA Playoffs, Western Conference, First RoundWhere: Toyota Center, Houston, TX/Chase Center, San Francisco, CAWinners: GSW won season series 3-2
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Rocket to Watch: Alperen Sengun
SENGUN POSTER ON DRAYMOND.
pic.twitter.com/Wbuw9FqDuh
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) April 21, 2025
Lift-off has, ironically enough, been the Rockets’ key to victory: Houston leads the league in rebounding and, more importantly, paces the association on the offensive glass. That has allowed them to secure another vital statistical lead, that of most field goals attempted this year. At the forefront of the push for second chances is Sengun, who is pulling in 3.4 per game.
While Sengun perhaps doesn’t carry the name-brand recognition of some fellow paint dwellers, the record book has hardly cared. Sengun has set several personal milestones en route to his first All-Star Game invite this season. The rebounds and blocks speak for themselves but Sengun also became the youngest center to reach 1,000 assists for his career back in January.
Warrior to Watch: Draymond Green
Defensive mastermind.
Draymond Green has been named a finalist for the 2024-25 @Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year award 💪 pic.twitter.com/QTFdGD64uA
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) April 20, 2025
Reports of Green’s demise have, for better and worse, been greatly exaggerated. His opponents have learned that the hard way and Green is once again at the forefront of the Defensive Player of the Year discussion. Rockets have been Green’s specialty in his most memorable postseason showings and now a potential timebomb awaits in the form of the talented by volatile Brooks, who can be explosive for all the wrong reasons. Houston will not only have to find a way to get through Green’s cutthroat defense but also work against his dangerous mental exercises as well.
What They’re Saying
“It’s kind of like the standard, almost like the blueprint, honestly. The Warriors have won so many games and done so much in the past 10 years or whatever. It’s kind of like you test yourself against them. With guys like Draymond and Steph over there, who have done winning and done it at the highest level, you kind of test yourself against them to see how hard they play, and see how much you prepare and it’s kind of like an eye-opener when you can go beat those teams, you can go compete against those teams. It’s also an eye-opener when you can end up down plenty to those teams so quick. So it just shows how much of a complete game you got to play against good teams like that, with good veterans and well-coached teams.”-Jabari Smith Jr. (h/t Danielle Lerner, Houston Chronicle)
“I love having a target on my back … [Golden State] is going to be the squad to beat. Everybody always fears them. Everybody always knows that they’re not out of any game, out of any series, and I love to be a part of it. I ain’t scared of nobody. You know me. I’m not scared of nobody. I know what I’m capable of. Like I always say, now is the time to show it, but I know what they’re capable of more than anything. When you’ve got some hellified ballers in there that are confident, that accept their role, and they do whatever we ask them to do to win, man, that’s hard to beat. That’s very hard to beat.”-Jimmy Butler (h/t Sam Amick, The Athletic)
Prediction
If any series in this debut round features an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object, it’s this Western clash between the breakout talents of the Rockets and a Bay Area group that knows how to win better than anyone among the 16. What the Rockets have done this season can’t be denied and it feels like they’ll be a problem for years to come. But betting against a revived Curry and Green in the opening round is silly as is—and becomes downright foolhardy with the postseason antics of Butler now on their side.
The future feels like it belongs to Houston. The present, however, is still Golden.
Warriors in 7
Geoff Magliocchetti is on X @GeoffJMags
