Revisting some of the lowest moments of the Rockets rebuild

The Rockets have come a long way from the Stephen Silas years.

It’s official: The Houston Rockets have finished with more than 50 wins in a season for the first time since 2019. Houston has come a long way in the past four seasons, so let’s take a trip down memory lane and look at some moments that stand out to me from the rebuild that show just how far the Rockets have come in just a few short years.

James Harden throwing a basketball at Jae’Sean Tate

Although this happened before the official start of the rebuild, I still think it is one of the funniest moments of the Harden trade request era. After Harden’s reluctance to join Houston for workouts and his unavailability during the off-season, it was clear he wanted little to do with Houston. However, when Harden was asked, he said he was going to try and work things out with the Rockets. Well, reports surfaced on Tuesday, December 22 that Harden had multiple verbal altercations at practice on both Sunday and Monday and even threw a basketball at rookie Jae’Sean Tate. Although Harden was still on the roster after this, it was clear that he wanted out. Also, shout out to Tate for being the last member of the pre-rebuild team to be on the roster.

Celebrating that Houston kept their pick in 2021

I remember being down BAD during the 2020-2021 NBA season. Being a Rockets fan post-Harden trade was difficult. My algebra teacher asked me if I was ok the day after Harden got traded. The only real hope Houston had was to build through the draft. However, due to what is considered to be one of the worst transactions in Rockets history, Houston owed their pick to Oklahoma City due to the Chris Paul-Russell Westbrook trade. Although the pick did have top four protections with the pick, there was a pretty good chance Houston would lose it to OKC. Thankfully, the Ping Pong ball gods smiled upon Houston, as they ended up with the second overall pick in the 2021 draft, keeping their pick and drafting shooting guard Jalen Green, one of the foundational pieces of the rebuild. Make no mistake, this wasn’t exactly a low point. But when the best you can do is — We didn’t lose our draft pick — things aren’t exactly going great.

KPJ and Christian Wood leaving at halftime

After a heated altercation with Houston assistant coach John Lucas in the locker room during a home game on January 1, 2022 against the Denver Nuggets, Celtics guard Kevin Porter Jr. fled the stadium before halftime, according to sources who spoke to The Athletic. The Rockets lost 124-111 in the end. According to sources, Lucas criticized a number of players during halftime, highlighting Porter’s play and Christian Wood’s level of effort. Wood was benched after missing a required COVID-19 testing window. Porter flung something as the situation worsened, had to be separated from Lucas, got into his car, and drove out of the arena. According to accounts, Wood declined to enter the game as a substitute in the second half.

Kelly Iko of The Athletic was informed by a Rockets source that Porter apologized for the overreaction. He was being assessed for a left thigh ailment that has been bothering him lately, head coach Stephen Silas claimed to reporters following the game, and he said that he simply chose not to use Wood in the second half.

At the time of the two players’ exit, Houston gave up 47 points in the second quarter and was behind Denver 77-55 at the break. In 16 minutes, Porter scored 8 points and dished out 3 assists.

During the first half, Wood played eight minutes and shot 0-for-4 without scoring. He arrived late for pregame warm-ups and started the game off the bench, but according to sources, he told coaches at halftime that he didn’t want to play in the second half.

It’s pretty crazy in retrospect that some Rockets fans were convinced KPJ was the next Harden, and that Christian Wood was an elite center. We all know how both of those players’ Houston careers ended. Hint: It was not good.

Eric Gordon fed up

It’s clear Rockets guard Eric Gordon was a bit out of place on Houston’s roster during the rebuilding years. While every team needs veterans, Gordon seemed to grow tired of the constant losing.

During January of the 2022-2023 NBA season, Eric was asked if he had seen any improvement since the season had started, and Gordon responded, “There’s no improvement.”

Silas banging the table

Everyone knew that Rockets head coach Stephen Silas was unhappy following yet another poor defensive performance by his club when he entered the press conference room for a postgame interview. Even in loss, his normally cheerful disposition and amiable smile had vanished. This loss was different from the others since Silas was unable to control his emotions or facial expressions.

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Looking back on these years is a simple exercise in appreciation. The Rockets have come a long way from just a few seasons ago, and the job Ime Udoka and Rafael Stone have done to bring Houston back from the doldrums should be commended, no matter how the season ends at this point. Go Rockets!