What to Watch for in Houston Rockets vs. Utah Jazz

Coming off a heartbreaking 108-106 loss to the New York Knicks on Saturday, the Houston Rockets are desperately looking to get back on track against the Utah Jazz tonight in Salt Lake City.

It's been a rough few weeks for the Rockets, who have lacked significant production on the offensive end. They blew an 18-point lead to the Knicks in Madison Square Garden, getting outscored 33-15 in the fourth quarter.

With a 4-4 February record, Houston needs to win against a team actively trying to drop games and secure the best odds at the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. The Jazz are 6-19 since the turn of the year, and having all four of their top scorers on the sidelines tonight. Here are two things to look out as the Rockets try to secure an easy win and get back on track:

Perimeter Defense

Houston has been much better on the defensive end compared to its offense, but the focus will be on key wings in Ace Bailey, Brice Sensabaugh and Isaiah Collier. Jaren Jackson Jr., Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George are all out due to injury, so the Rockets should have an easy time getting the basket.

That means their real task will be stopping the youngsters from saving Utah's chances at a win. Bailey, Sensabaugh and Collier have taken advantage of new opportunities as of late, especially Collier. The point guard is averaging 16.7 points, 10.0 assists and 2.5 steals in his last 10 games.

The Rockets will need to rely on Kevin Durant, Amen Thompson, Tari Eason and other perimeter players to stop Utah's wings from going off. They'll need to play to their strengths and show off athleticism and versatility.

Turnovers

This has been an overarching trend for the season, but this is also a perfect opportunity for Houston to clean up its turnover problem. The Rockets are averaging 15.4 turnovers per game with a 15.8% rate, which ranks 27th in the NBA. They have suffered plenty of offensive setbacks in the absence of a true point guard.

Houston committed 19 turnovers against the Knicks, but the Jazz own the league's worst defensive rating at the moment. The visitors cannot play as sloppily against a poor team that already has injury issues as well. If the Rockets can't take care of the ball in Utah, there may be no hope that their biggest weakness could get fixed before the postseason.