Three Challenges Facing the Houston Rockets This Season

While the Houston Rockets are widely expected to be one of the best teams in the NBA, they could also be the most volatile. They had a major offseason, adding a plethora of talent highlighted by Kevin Durant, and already pose one of the best young cores in the league.

However, Houston's rise to relevance last season was somewhat unexpected, at least when talking about how much better the team looked from the 2023-24 season. After going 41-41 that year, the Rockets clinched the No. 2 seed in a crowded Western Conference, going 52-30.

This season, the expectation is more of the same or even better. But there will be some major challenges facing them this season, as there are with any team:

Houston Will Be Without Fred VanVleet

The most obvious challenge is navigating the offense without Fred VanVleet, who tore his ACL before the start of training camp. Forget about the potential replacements for a second and think about how much the 31-year-old has provided to this young core over the last two seasons.

Last year, VanVleet averaged 14.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game. His shooting percentages weren't that great, but he still had a clear impact on the Rockets' young core, and certainly became the focal point of the offense during the playoffs.

Despite a first-round upset to the Golden State Warriors, VanVleet averaged 18.7 points, 4.4 assists and 4.1 rebounds on way better shooting splits. It warranted Houston to bring him back on a more team-friendly deal this offseason.

Without VanVleet, Houston is missing a two-way floor general and a veteran leader. Amen Thompson, Reed Sheppard and Alperen Sengun are expected to step up as facilitators, but the point guard's absence will certainly be missed.

Reed Sheppard Needs to Develop Sooner Than Expected

Speaking of Sheppard, he will be called upon way more than last season. The No. 3 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft had an underwhelming rookie year due to limited playing time and visible struggles. He averaged 4.4 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists across just 12.6 minutes per game.

Now, the 21-year-old will be called upon more in his second season, perhaps even as a starting guard. With the Rockets having risen to title contention so quickly, his development needs to speed up in order for them to remain elite.

The 6-foot-2 guard certainly has the tools to do so. At Kentucky, he was a two-way force, shooting a staggering 52.1% from three en route to averaging 12.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game (leading the SEC).

Will Kevin Durant's Age Catch Up to Him?

As fantastic as Durant has been over his 17-year career, and likely will be this season, Father Time is undefeated. With the way athletes train and stay healthy in the modern age of sports, he should continue to be one of the league's best scorers, but there's a chance he slows down a bit.

Houston brought in the 6-foot-11 scorer to be the primary shot creator and save the team in situations where it needs offense.

Will Durant show signs of slowing down? Probably not, but at 37 years old, it will be interesting to see how he meshes with the young core of Sengun, Thompson, Sheppard, Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason.