What Rockets Head Coach Ime Udoka Thinks is Missing Right Now

The Houston Rockets just suffered one of their worst losses of the season against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday night, and it got ugly in the second half.

Houston was eventually down 30 points late in the fourth quarter and were just never really competitive besides the first quarter and early second. It gave a sense of reality for where the Rockets really stand in terms of competing against the best of the best in the NBA. The Rockets dropped to fourth in the Western Conference standings at 39-24.

There clearly is a lot of work to be done now on both sides of the ball, and the Rockets don’t have a lot of time to fix it. While there has been plenty of discussion on what needs to be changed in the starting lineup and other adjustments the Rockets should make, head coach Ime Udoka offered more of the same on what he wants to see from his team.

Udoka Wants More Fire From the Rockets

Feb 25, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka reacts with guard Reed Sheppard (15) after the end of the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Udoka was asked by Varun Shankar of the Houston Chronicle on Sunday after the loss to the Spurs if he thinks the Rockets have the talent to compete with the top of the Western Conference.

Asked Ime Udoka if he felt his team had the top-tier talent to compete with top of West (SGA, Jokic, Wemby etc.)

"We have the talent no doubt. It's identity, mentality, toughness, dog, all of that is missing right now. We'll see if we can get it back by the end of the season).
— Varun Shankar (@ByVarunShankar) March 9, 2026

He clearly has a lot of belief in the talent on the team, as any coach would. However, Udoka goes back to his philosophy on toughness on what needs to improve. That has obviously made a positive impact on the Rockets over the past few seasons, and it’s a big reason for their turnaround from one of the worst teams in the league.

The Rockets have been known as one of the toughest teams in the league, but it’s only so far that having a “dog” mentality and tough identity can take you. There is no doubt the Rockets need to improve in that category, especially on defense. Houston will need to get back to being one of the better defensive teams in the league as it has been throughout the year, and that starts with Alperen Sengun improving.

Udoka’s answer to the question remains a familiar and repeated one for Rockets faithful. Whenever the Rockets lose a game, Udoka usually goes back to toughness as the main culprit. It’s the biggest part of the Rockets culture and understandably needs to be upheld, but is that really all there is to the story?

Many will say no. The Rockets have not made a whole lot of tactical adjustments throughout the season, especially on offense. Many Rockets fans would like to see a change in the starting lineup or other ways to get the offense going more consistently. Second-year guard Reed Sheppard and lineup personnel remain a big part of that conversation.

An interesting decision from Udoka was not to call a timeout when the Spurs went on a 22-6 run in the third quarter. In-game adjustments are something that could be helpful to the Rockets and Udoka in this critical stretch run of the season. The Rockets organization believes in the talent. It will be interesting to see if they make any changes in terms of putting their talent in different positions to succeed.