The Rockets’ Challenging Path Back to the Second Seed

When the Houston Rockets last held the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, they had just beaten some of the East's top teams and ended January as one of the top five teams in the NBA. Houston dropped in the standings after weeks of inconsistent play, paired with surges by several top Western Conference teams. The Rockets are now back in the second seed with some of their most consistent play this season.

A lot has happened for Houston since a big win against the Boston Celtics in late January. It followed that signature victory with a hard-fought win against the Atlanta Hawks, and confidence in the team was at its highest point in years.

That's when things started derailing for the Rockets.

They lost each of their next six games and had several difficult moments throughout the stretch. Houston couldn't stop top scorers during its six-game losing streak. Players like Anthony Davis, Anthony Edwards, and Jalen Brunson had big scoring nights against the Rockets, especially in the clutch.

Houston's normal defensive effectiveness had entirely faded from its earlier success this season. The Rockets' chances of beating a quality opponent are low when their defense isn't at its usual level. Their losses against playoff-caliber teams during their losing streak proved as much.

However, the Rockets also had some of their worst losses of the season against one of the league's worst teams.

Houston dropped two games against the Brooklyn Nets, a team not close to threatening for a postseason spot. The Rockets embarrassingly dropped both games. The first was a double-digit loss as the Nets outplayed Houston in every phase. The Rockets didn't have the energy to keep up with a Nets team rallying around D'Angelo Russell after the trade deadline. The second loss was given away on a late turnover, leading to an improbable come-from-behind victory delivered by a game-winning three-pointer.

Ugly losses against Brooklyn were an accurate depiction of how the Rockets were struggling during this stretch. Poor defense, unorganized offense, and marginal rebounding advantages stifled Houston's chances of winning.

Things began changing again when the Rockets won five of their next seven games. Their defeat to the Utah Jazz was another difficult loss against a team with no postseason aspirations. However, Houston did pick up another signature win against an Eastern Conference team by beating the Milwaukee Bucks.

Shortly after, the Rockets went on another losing streak, dropping three straight games as the Golden State Warriors steadily approached in the standings. Houston's six-game winning streak in response to the Warriors' rally is what the Rockets needed to help their chances at keeping homecourt advantage in the playoffs.

Houston has gained and lost momentum several times in the last few weeks. Now, the team is on its longest winning streak of the season, and it used the momentum to retake the second seed in the Western Conference. Getting the No. 2 back was hard for the Rockets; keeping it will be even harder.

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