How Much Will The Rockets Rely On Kevin Durant?

The Houston Rockets secured their biggest acquisition in years with Kevin Durant, a player still capable of leading a team offensively. Durant fulfills a lot of what Houston was missing this past season, but will Durant be counted on to carry the offense?

May 23, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Kevin Durant attends the game between the Golden State Valkyries and the LA Sparks at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Houston Rockets are entering the final phase of their rebuild that began in 2020 with the trades of Russell Westbrook and James Harden. The first phase was acquiring talent through the draft as a bottom-dwelling team. The next phase was bringing in veterans and a long-term coach to guide the young players into winning habits. Now, they bring in a player capable of being one of the league's 10 best players to help them contend against other championship hopefuls.

Durant's addition drastically increases Houston's odds of winning its third championship, but the Rockets won't accomplish much if they rely solely on Durant the way other top teams rely on their best players.

Houston can't afford to focus its entire game plan around Durant, like the Denver Nuggets do for Nikola Jokić or the Milwaukee Bucks for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Durant is a fantastic scorer, but he functions best when the rest of his team is playing quality, team-centric basketball. He's not like a prime version of Harden, who would take on opposing defenses one-on-one. Durant prefers to get his shots within the flow of the offense until crunch time, when teams have needed him to take over.

Head coach Ime Udoka has never had a player of Durant's caliber, but he has always coached his teams to emphasize getting the ball to whoever is hot. Any player can take significant shots for the offense, even if they play a smaller role than the best offensive player on the team.

However, many games will feature Durant as the best offensive option in most possessions. To avoid overreliance on Durant, Houston has invested stock in some of its young players who are still on track to improve next season.

Alperen Sengun just secured his first All-Star selection, a fitting reward for being Houston's best player throughout the rebuild. Amen Thompson proved his worth on the national stage, earning 1st-Team All-Defense honors for his elite efforts defensively.

These two players will be counted on to produce consistently, along with Durant, if the Rockets want to fulfill their potential as a possible champion.