After getting within a game of reaching the NBA Finals last season, the Houston Rockets are currently on pace for one of the biggest drop-offs in league history, posting a 11-14 record through the first quarter of the 2018-19 campaign. Here are the three takeaways from the first 25 games of the year.
Despite coming into the year with championship or bust expectations for the second consecutive season, the Houston Rockets have managed to stumble mightily out of the starting blocks, as the team that was once considered as one of the best in basketball has failed to perform up to expectations.
After winning 65 games and reaching the 2018 Western Conference Finals, Houton has posted an 11-14 record through the first quarter of the new season, and is currently on pace to win 36 games, after dropping seven out of their last 10 games by an average of 11.4 points per contest.
"“We’re upset about it,” head coach Mike D’Antoni told reporters when asked about the team’s slow start following the team’s recent practice on Monday afternoon. “You don’t sleep well. You’re trying to search for answers, and [the players are] doing the same thing. Nobody’s confidence is shaken. “It’s not like there’s a woe-is-me kind of attitude. It’s getting late, and I told them, hey we’re in a hole, but you can’t be a great team and get out of the hole unless we start playing.”"
Now, the Rockets find themselves trying to climb back atop of the standings, as the squad that once began to show signs of life — and rarely missed a beat a year ago — is currently working to regain its footing in a rough and rugged Western Conference.
With that being said, here are the three most important takeaways from Clutch City’s first 25 games of the regular season.