Houston Rockets: 3 biggest takeaways from current win streak

2. Houston’s “D” isn’t spectacular, but has been better lately

Last season, the Rockets finished seventh in points allowed (103.9 points per game) and sixth in defensive rating (106.1 points per 100 possessions). Needless to say, this played a major role in helping them pile up 65 wins.

This season, the Rockets haven’t had the same level of success at that end of the floor. They are currently ranked 10th in points allowed (108.7 points per contest), with a defensive rating of 112.9 — the fifth-worst mark in the association, per Basketball-Reference.

During the course of the win streak, however, the Rockets’ defense has been somewhat decent. For starters, after giving up 104 points to the Trail Blazers and 111 points to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Rockets have held their last two opponents to 97 points per game. Overall, they have given up 102.3 points per contest during the win streak, which is six points lower than their season average.

In addition to that, they have limited two of their four opponents to less than 45 percent shooting from the field and out of the four teams Houston has faced, the Utah Jazz are the only ball club that doesn’t have a winning record.

In spite of the recent turnaround, it is still difficult to foresee a scenario in which the Rockets come out of the Western Conference. At the same time, if they continue to improve at that end of the floor, anything is possible.