Ime Udoka breaks silence on Kevin Durant’s role on Houston Rockets, it will make young stars happy

Ime Udoka says Kevin Durant doesn’t want the Houston Rockets to ‘lean on him’

Durant is on the cusp of turning 37 years old, but he still remains a prolific scorer in the NBA. After all, he averaged 26.6 points per game for the Suns last season.

On an average NBA team, any head coach would run the offense through the Slim Reaper. However, with the Rockets having the likes of Amen Thompson and Alperen Sengun developing at an impressive rate, KD taking up a lot of touches could hinder their growth.

Fortunately, Durant has no such wishes once he starts playing for them next season, per coach Udoka.

“He’s a guy that doesn’t want (us) to just lean on him. He wants to kind of be implemented into the group, and people not to take a backseat to him,” Udoka said, via The Houston Chronicle.

He added: “That’s his message to a lot of the young guys: Be who you are, continue to grow in those areas, and I’ll fit in where we see necessary.”

It shows incredible maturity from the 2x NBA champion and proves why the Rockets’ young stars are excited to share the court with him.

Kevin Durant is an ‘unselfish’ player with a very ‘high’ IQ, says Ime Udoka

Durant is currently preparing for Year 18 in the NBA. While there have been players who rattled KD during his career, he has always managed to overcome those hurdles.

A key reason behind it is his ability to adjust to new systems, which he has shown time after time throughout his NBA career.

“The things that he does on the court, offensively, are seamless. You can fit him into any system. You’ve seen that wherever he’s gone, even in the last few years.

The efficiency, the numbers at an older age, he’s still doing that at a very high level. So he’ll fit in seamlessly with our guys,” Udoka continued.

“I think the attention that he draws will be beneficial to others. He’s a guy you can lean on at times to close games, but a very unselfish player as well with a high IQ,” the Rockets coach concluded.

Last season, the Rockets clinched the second seed in the Western Conference, and now with KD on the roster, it won’t be a surprise if they repeat a similar outcome during the 2025-26 campaign.