Houston Rockets: 3 big questions heading into 2019-20

2. Can the depth players show up when it matters?

The Houston Rockets are a playoff team. Regardless of seed, and barring a very catastrophic event, the Rockets will fight for a chance at an NBA title this season. There is no questioning that. On the flip side, how close are the Rockets to actually winning an NBA title?

They have the star power, more now than ever before, but co-existing and depth will be the name of their game. The Toronto Raptors proved that with the right players, there is a chance to pull off the big W.

Mind you, the Raptors had the best big-game player of this era in Kawhi Leonard, but the Rockets can mirror something similar to try and get their depth players to raise their games to match their stars.

Capela, as mentioned, could be taking the next steps in his game. The same needs to be seen from Austin Rivers, Eric Gordon and P.J. Tucker. They are the most experienced and relied-upon players on the Rockets roster and they need to consistently show up when it matters.

These are the type of players who can make or break your title aspirations. This is also why the addition of Tyson Chandler is key for the rest of their team. He is a better option than Nene and plays a similar game to Clint Capela.

With the increased depth, the Rockets look like a better team on paper.

If there were any major injuries to James Harden or Russell Westbrook, these are the players who will need to pick up the slack. With that in mind, are they able to help carry this team over the Western Conference hump? Probably not.

However, with the, hopefully successful, combination of Harden and Westbrook, they definitely do. The West is becoming increasingly difficult to win, but the Rockets have the potential to do it if rest of the team can help carry the load with Harden and Westbrook.