Houston Rockets: Breaking News, Rumors & Highlights

Rockets' Amen Thompson Misses out on All-Defensive Team

Houston Rockets wing/guard Amen Thompson has immersed as one of the league's best defensive wings in the NBA in just three short seasons. Thompson made the All-Defensive First Team in 2024-25, proving capable of taking on the opposing team's top scoring threat on a nightly basis.

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The Quiz of the Day

Can Margin Moves Enhance The Rockets' Chances?

When the Houston Rockets made their big swing for Kevin Durant prior to this season, it seemed the front office believed they had all the pieces to compete at a high level.

Houston Rockets News / The Dream Shake / May 23

Report: Rockets interested in Kyrie Irving

The Houston Rockets have a major offseason ahead. Amen Thompson and Tari Eason are both up for contract extensions, and reports have come out that Fred VanVleet may get his contract restructured, and this is not counting them having Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams back next year.

Amen Thompson News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 23

Predicting Amen Thompson's Next Contract with Rockets

The 2025-26 NBA regular season is over and done with. And the playoffs are also nearing an end, as we're in the Conference Finals round, with a little over a week until the NBA Finals kick off.

New York Knicks News / Yardbarker Quizzes

The '35-5-5 Conference Finals games' quiz

How many of the players to score 35 points, dish out five assists and haul in five rebounds in a Conference Final game at least once can you name in six minutes?

The '600-point NBA postseasons' quiz

The 'Last 40-point NBA Playoff games' quiz

The 'Active NBA Playoff 3's leaders' quiz

Houston Rockets News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 23

Rockets' Steven Adams' Defense on Victor Wembanyama in Regular Season Goes Viral

Opponents haven't found much success against phenom superstar center, Victor Wembanyama, who has taken over the playoffs in his first postseason appearance with the San Antonio Spurs.

NBA News / Yardbarker

The best homegrown player for every NBA franchise

As an NBA fan, it hits different when a team's best player is a guy the franchise nurtured from the very start. There's a greater attachment to stars who have been there since the start, who have bled the team's colors since the start of their careers.

Houston Rockets News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 22

How the Houston Rockets Can Acquire Kyrie Irving This NBA Offseason

It's no secret that the Houston Rockets' biggest positional weakness was at point guard. As soon as Fred VanVleet went down with a torn ACL back in September, the Rockets dropped a tier in the league's hierarchy, going from a legitimate NBA Finals contender to a good, but not great rotation.

Tari Eason News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 22

NBA Insider Reveals Potential Contract, Suitors for Rockets' Tari Eason

The Houston Rockets have an important decision to make this NBA offseason regarding one of their most important homegrown talents. Amid the many storylines this summer, Tari Eason will enter restricted free agency after four seasons with the organization.

Kevin Durant News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 22

Rockets' Kevin Durant, Drake Star in Nike Ad Ahead of Collab

Houston Rockets superstar Kevin Durant and five-time Grammy award winning artist Drake have quite a bit in common. Both are superstars, who each rank atop their respective professions.

NBA News / Hoops Wire / May 22

Could Hornets be sneaky fit for Rockets’ Jabari Smith Jr?

The Charlotte Hornets probably aren’t landing Jabari Smith Jr. this summer. But much like the recent Jalen Williams speculation involving the Atlanta Hawks, there’s at least enough basketball logic here to make the idea interesting.

Kevin Durant News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 21

The Rockets May See A Better Version of Kevin Durant

The Houston Rockets are moving forward, expecting to take another step next season without making a major move for another star. Obviously, if a deal appears the front office can't refuse, the team could look majorly different heading into next season.

NBA News / Yardbarker

The most unlikely 50-point games in NBA history

If an NBA player ends a game with 30 points, that's generally a great night. 40 points is fantastic, and 50 points is an event. That's especially true when that type of scoring outburst comes from an unexpected source.

Houston Rockets News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 21

On This Day in Rockets History: The Kiss of Death

The Houston Rockets have had some special moments during their storied history. Obviously, a lot of the great times in the organization were during the back-to-back championships in 1994 and 1995.

Houston Rockets News / The Dream Shake / May 21

Rockets 2025-2026 season in review: Jabari Smith Jr.

In sports, there are three types of players. Those who are great regular season players, who take their greatness to a whole other level in the playoffs.

Click here to get Yardbarker's Quiz of the Day emailed to you!

The 'NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 winners' quiz

The 'ERA leaders since 2003' quiz

The '35-5-5 Conference Finals games' quiz

The 'NBA MVPs' quiz

Houston Rockets News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 21

Mock Draft: Rockets Address Lack of Bench Depth in Second Round

The Houston Rockets' bench was a major issue during the 2025-26 NBA season. The Rockets' only viable scoring threat from the second unit was Reed Sheppard.

Trey Murphy News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 21

Mock Trade: Rockets Land Trey Murphy from Pelicans

The Houston Rockets could go big game hunting this summer, for the second year in a row. Granted, Kevin Durant landed in their lap last summer, as he was available for a much lower cost than usual.

James Harden News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 21

Cavs Loss in Game 1 Illustrates Rockets' Reason for Passing on James Harden

James Harden is one of the greatest players in the history of the Houston Rockets franchise. In fact, some people have him ahead of Hakeem Olajuwon, who is easily and undeniably one of the greatest players in NBA history. And there's a case to be made.

NBA News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 21

Rockets Reportedly Interested in Mavericks' Kyrie Irving

The Houston Rockets are facing a big offseason. Their roster needs work, even if they are expecting to get Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams back next year. Adams will be 33 and coming off his fourth consecutive injury-shortened season.

Houston Rockets News / The Dream Shake / May 21

Is Rafael Stone expecting too much from Reed Sheppard?

The next Steph Curry. The next Steve Nash. The next Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf…the next Brent Price. The first Reed Sheppard – existentially speaking. He is not a Kevin O’Connor comparison – He is a solitary unit.

Houston Rockets News / NBA on ClutchPoints / May 21

2 players Rockets must trade after ugly playoff series loss to Lakers

A few weeks have passed since the Houston Rockets’ 2025-26 campaign came to a dispiriting end at the hands of the shorthanded Los Angeles Lakers. This

Houston Rockets News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 20

Houston Rockets Free Agency: Biggest Storylines to Watch

This is going to be a busy offseason for the Houston Rockets, who will have multiple enormous tasks to complete or at least engage with in order to formulate a roster good enough to contend for a championship next season.

Houston Rockets News / Houston Rockets on SI / May 20

The Rockets Can't Be Saved By Just Any Superstar

The Houston Rockets are clearly not at a level to compete against the best the league has to offer. Their scoring potential is limited compared to teams that are fully staffed with a wide range of archetypes and players who can do multiple things well.

Kevin Durant News / Ball Exclusives / May 20

Kevin Durant stars in hilarious Nike ad alongside Drake

Nike is now showing off the new signature shoe of Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant, doing so in a hilarious way. In a new ad for Durant’s Nike KD 19, he’s seen showing off a few ridiculously ugly shoe concepts to Drake, who gasses up the designs regardless.

NBA News / Yardbarker / May 21

The NBA will never be the same after Victor Wembanyama’s masterpiece

There are nights when you watch an NBA playoff game and you can literally feel the tectonic plates of the league shifting through an individual player's first legendary performance.

Excited Magic Johnson compares Victor Wembanyama to Steph Curry

Lakers' LeBron James outlines timeline for deciding plans for this upcoming season

Depth shines for Thunder in bounce-back Game 2 win over Spurs

The 'NBA Defensive Players of the Year' quiz

Houston Rockets News / NBA Draft on SI / May 19

Assessing the Houston Rockets' Biggest Needs at the 2026 NBA Draft

Losing in the first round of the playoffs for the second straight season was a tough pill for the Houston Rockets to swallow. They had legitimate title hopes with the arrival of Kevin Durant, pairing him with a young core that showed serious development the year prior.

Houston Rockets News / HITC / May 19

Why Amen Thompson’s max deal isn’t guaranteed for Houston

Amen Thompson is expected to land a major extension with the Houston Rockets, but a full maximum contract is not guaranteed. The 23-year-old is now eligible after averaging 18.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists last season, all career-high marks.

Houston Rockets News / Larry Brown Sports / May 17

Fred VanVleet addresses Kevin Durant’s ‘curse’ amid burner account accusations

Fred VanVleet believes Kevin Durant may be his own worst enemy when it comes to drawing negative attention from the media. Durant became a lightning rod of controversy in his first season with the Houston Rockets when a social media account allegedly belonging to Durant was leaked.