Rockets complete rebuild in return to playoffs and series against defending champion Celtics

HOUSTON (AP) - When Fred VanVleet joined the Houston Rockets in 2023, they were one of the worst teams in the NBA having won just 42 games combined in the previous two seasons.

Now they're back in the playoffs for the first time since 2020, finishing a rebuild completed under the guidance of coach Ime Udoka and with a big assist from VanVleet's veteran leadership.

"You saw the talent … but we were so far away," he said of the team upon his arrival. "And it's amazing the ground that we've covered in two years - such a short period of time."

The Rockets are the second seed in the Western Conference and open their best-of-seven first round series against No. 7 seed Golden State on Sunday night in Houston.

It will be Houston's first playoff series since 2020, when they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the conference semifinals. That was the last of a franchise-record eight consecutive trips to the playoffs, that included two appearances in the conference finals.

The next season James Harden demanded a trade and got it in January, sending the Rockets into a freefall to the basement of the NBA. After moving on from Harden, the Rockets traded or released most of their veterans and finished the 2020-21 season with an NBA-worst 17-55 record under first-year coach Stephen Silas.

They won just 20 games the following season and 22 in 2022-23 and Silas was fired.

He was replaced by Udoka, who led Boston to the NBA Finals in the 2021-22 season, then was suspended for the following season after the disclosure of an inappropriate relationship with a female Celtics employee.

After the hiring of Udoka, the Rockets began to invest in veterans to play with a young team that included Jalen Green, the second pick in the 2021 draft, Alperen Sengun the 16th pick in that draft, Jabari Smith, chosen third overall in 2022 and Amen Thompson, the fourth selection in 2023.

Along with VanVleet, they brought in defensive standout Dillon Brooks and Houston finished Udoka's first season 41-41, setting the stage for this season's return to the postseason.

"A lot of our guys … they had been around a lot of losing," Udoka said. "It was good to see guys come in on a consistent basis and preach the right things, but also back it up with their play on the court, not just words. And so, Fred's been instrumental at that."

Udoka said when building a winning culture, it's important to have players who have done it like VanVleet, Brooks and 38-year-old Jeff Green.

"(They've) allowed us to grow our young guys in certain ways and they learned from the lessons that (VanVleet) imparts out there, so huge pick up for us," Udoka said. "The right vets are crucial for their development, and they've done that."

The 21-year-old Smith said he views VanVleet - 10 years his senior - like a big brother and raved about his guidance. It doesn't hurt that the point guard came to Houston with a title he won in 2019 with the Raptors under his belt.

"He shows us what it's about, what winning's about," Smith said. "He's won a championship. He's played with great players. He's just paving the way for us."

VanVleet saw signs of growth last season, but he knew the Rockets weren't quite there yet.

"It was up and down," he said. "Last year was like two steps forward, three steps back, but I liked our competitiveness, and we always rose to the occasion playing against good teams (and) had some big wins."

This season he saw the team grow and find consistency. As they collected several wins on the road against good teams, he witnessed the belief building and knew that this was a playoff team.

Teammates ask VanVleet questions and seek his advice all the time. But it was around January when one of Houston's young players - who VanVleet declined to name - approached him with a query that showed he was getting through to them.

"(They asked) if I thought that we could win a championship this year," VanVleet said. "And you could see young guys' brains start to believe it and start to see the work paying off. So that was a cool moment because you could see it in real time, their eyes starting to open and realize the potential that this group has."

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