The Rockets Are Changing What a Successful Offense Looks Like in 2025

Over the last few years, the Houston Rockets have transformed their identity. Since James Harden arrived in Houston, the Rockets have been a team that shoots more 3-pointers than any other team in the NBA. Season after season from 2012 to when Harden was traded away in 2021, the Rockets took the majority of their shots from right at the basket or beyond the 3-point line.

Teams like the Rockets and Warriors jump-started the 3-point revolution that continues to this day. During the rebuilding season from 2021 to 2023, the Rockets were a young team still learning how to win. Losses piled up as the Rockets added high draft picks and valued player development over wins. The Rockets still took a good number of shots from downtown as they tried to keep pace with the rest of the NBA.

Even though the numbers dropped in the last season of the rebuild, the Rockets still finished shooting 31.9 attempts per game. The following season, Ime Udoka took over, which signaled the end of the rebuilding phase. The Rockets' attempts went up to over 36 a game in Udoka's first season, which, considering where they are this season, is a surprise.

The following season was much of the same, as the Rockets shot only 35.2 a game in 2024-25, putting them in the bottom ten in the NBA and ranking them 21st in the league. We did start to see a shift later in the season, with the Rockets finding success with their double-big lineup of Steven Adams and Alperen Sengun. With the success of that lineup, especially in the postseason and the addition of one of the greatest mid-range shooters in history, the Rockets were getting ready to flip the script entirely.

The Rockets Are Shooting Their Lowest 3-Point Attempts per Game in Over a Decade

Dec 11, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets forward Kevin Durant (7) shoots the ball during the third quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

After acquiring Durant, who isn't a high-volume 3-point shooter, the Rockets wanted to lean heavily on getting into the paint and scoring inside as much as possible. The Rockets won 52 games last season, their best record since 2020, and didn't want to rely solely on 3-point shooting, as some teams have in recent seasons.

The Rockets rank last in attempts at 29.8 a game, which would be their lowest mark since 2013-14, when they shot 26.5 a game. That was also the last season the Rockets shot under 30 attempts per game from the 3-point line. In 2019-2020, the Rockets took an NBA-record 45.5 shots per game.

Even with the low attempts the Rockets are taking advantage of the ones they do take as they rank third in percentage at 39.6. In fact the Rockets have been a top five offense all season long even with the low 3-point volume.

That was broken by the Boston Celtics last season, who shot 48.2 percent a game. The Rockets, however, still hold the second and third spots on the top three list. The Rockets have spoken multiple times about why they dont shoot as many shots from downtown. Kevin Durant has said that it isn't necessarily a strategy; it is about taking the best shots, and for them, that happens to be within the arc.

Another factor is the Rockets dominance on the boards especially offensive rebounding. The Rockets are on pace to have the best offensive rebounding season in NBA history, so a good amount of those points is coming from inside the paint off those offensive rebounds.

The Rockets know that in the playoffs scoring is at a premium and each possesion takes on more weight. The Rockets were one of the teams over a decade ago to change the trend toward more 3-point attempts and now in 2025 they are changing how basketball is played again.