NBA Postseason Power Rankings: Rockets Start Low After Quiet Trade Deadline

With the NBA trade deadline now behind us, teams will begin to make a second-half push for the playoffs without making any significant roster changes. The days leading up to Feb. 5 brought recording-setting movement around the league, but the Houston Rockets were one of three teams to stay silent.

It was certainly perplexing to see a team with such glaring weaknesses not make any trades, but the Rockets were active in talks; things just didn't materialize. In a crowded Western Conference, that could be detrimental to Houston's hope of a deep playoff run in year one of the Kevin Durant era.

On Jan. 25, Houston Rockets On SI's Western Conference tiers had the team in the third of five groups. At this point, the top 10 seeds in the West are practically set, barring astronomical runs from bottom-feeders. Of those teams, where do the Rockets rank right now?

10. LA Clippers

The Clippers, although the ninth seed in the West, made the decision to fall back into rebuild mode after trading James Harden and Ivica Zubac at the deadline. This is despite LA having gone 19-6 since Dec. 19.

They'll have to live with a huge gamble after selling Zubac for an oddly protected Indiana Pacers draft pick this year. But given that most of the teams below them have sold talent, the Clippers are still expected to make the Play-In Tournament. Everyone in seeds 11 through 15 is aggressively losing right now.

9. Portland Trail Blazers

The Trail Blazers have been one of the more fun teams to watch despite a 25-28 record. Deni Avdija, their All-Star wing, is leading a promising young core to challenge some of the higher teams in the conference.

Portland has won games off of its offensive rebounding and fast pace, ranking in the top seven in both categories. It's not necessarily pretty basketball, but the Trail Blazers got Jrue Holiday back at point guard, which should improve ball movement and limit turnovers going forward.

8. Golden State Warriors

The Warriors whiffed at the deadline, settling for Kristaps Porzingis after failing to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo. They're desperately trying to give Stephen Curry one last deep postseason run, but the rotation just isn't good enough, especially after losing Jimmy Butler to a torn ACL.

Golden State has struggled mightily on the road (11-16), and while the defense has been impressive (seventh in defensive rating), the other side of the ball is dramatically lacking production with the greatest shooter ever at the helm.

7. Phoenix Suns

Moving back into a more positive light, the Suns have overachieved at 31-22, and have done so with former Rocket Dillon Brooks playing at a near-All-Star level. He and Devin Booker are combining to average 46.4 points per game, while the breakout performance of Collin Gillespie has provided legitimate depth at point guard.

Phoenix ranks seventh in offensive rebounding percentage, but also allows just 13.5 fastbreak points per game (fifth). The defense has been on another level this season, and the Suns knew they were getting that by swapping Durant with Brooks and Jalen Green. They're an underrated and scary postseason team purely due to the underdog status.

6. Minnesota Timberwolves

The Timberwolves would be above the Rockets if they hadn't lost three bad games over the last week. Minnesota has dropped matchups against the Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Pelicans, and, most recently, the Clippers on Sunday.

The hope is that Ayo Dosunmu and the potential return of Mike Conley via the buyout market will mitigate their issues at the point guard position. But the Timberwolves have struggled against West teams for one that's supposed to make the playoffs (18-17). It's clear that without Anthony Edwards, they're nothing more than a fringe postseason team.

5. Houston Rockets

Despite being tied for fourth in the West right now, the Rockets' trade deadline silence and recent shortcomings have dropped them below the Lakers, who got slightly better over the last few days. They most recently lost two of their last three games by an average of 15.5 points.

Without Fred VanVleet (torn ACL) and Steven Adams (ankle surgery), Houston lacks true facilitation and its biggest strength: offensive rebounding. Without a point guard in VanVleet, the Rockets have forced stars such as Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun to join this committee of initiators. Now, they'll also have to get more active on the glass.

4. Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers didn't do anything substantial at the deadline, but they did make an underrated move in swapping out Gabe Vincent for Luke Kennard, a 44% career three-point shooter. They've won three in a row, one and a half of those games being without Luka Doncic.

Los Angeles still has noticeable weaknesses, particularly on the defensive end and in the paint, but the return of Austin Reaves should help propel the offense enough to give the team in contention for home-court advantage in the playoffs. The Lakers are getting the right pieces at the right time, and LeBron James is looking more comfortable as a facilitating third option, averaging 6.8 assists a night.

3. Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets are 2-3 since Nikola Jokic returned from a knee injury on Jan. 30, but then again, how can you doubt a team that has someone averaging 28.9 points, 12.2 rebounds and 10.7 assists per game?

Denver stepped up big time in his absence, with Jamal Murray and Peyton Watson most notably. Cam Johnson came back with 14 points in 27 minutes against the Chicago Bulls, and with the rest of the rotation practically back, the Nuggets should hold their seed unless things go south. It's hard to see that happening, considering they overachieved with reserves leading the way at one point.

2. San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs were one of the three teams that stayed silent at the trade deadline, but they didn't need to make any moves at 36-16. The young core has developed into a legitimate title contender, and a fully healthy rotation sets them for success after beating the reigning-champion Oklahoma City Thunder in four of five matchups.

Victor Wembanyama has gotten an unbelievable amount of help from his guards. De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell and Dylan Harper have provided two-way flare to stop opponents on the perimeter while creating efficient offense on the other end. San Antonio has a complete nine-man rotation with almost no weaknesses, ranking 10th in offensive rating and third in defense.

1. Oklahoma City Thunder

We got too ahead of ourselves when the Thunder got off to a 24-1 start. At the time, it was justified to think they'd beat the all-time regular-season wins record, but since Dec. 13, they've gone 16-12, and now Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will be out past the All-Star break with an abdominal injury.

Oklahoma City has struggled to get much offense out of anyone not named Gilgeous-Alexander or Chet Holmgren. Jalen Williams has looked rusty (as expected) since returning from hand surgery, but it only puts more pressure on guys like Alex Caruson, Lu Dort and Cason Wallace to step up as shot creators.

The acquisition of Jared McCain at the deadline could improve perimeter shooting, but the Thunder have leaned more on Ajay Mitchell, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins to hit shots, which poses a dilemma: down the stretch, would you rather surround the stars without elite shooting or ball-stoppage?