Which Rockets’ Opponents Have the Most to Lose in Next Stretch?

The Houston Rockets are looking to finish the year on a run after playing their worst stretch of basketball in the season's latter half. Two losing streaks caused Houston to fall a few places in the standings, and now the Golden State Warriors are not far behind. The Rockets hope to play with some fire to hold the fifth seed and potentially climb back up the standings. However, they aren't the only teams with a lot on the line in the last weeks of the regular season.

The Phoenix Suns may be playing for its franchise to end the season as they try to sneak into Play-In seeding. Several reports claim Kevin Durant may be playing his last games for Phoenix this season, and it isn't clear how that would impact Devin Booker's willingness to stay on the team.

Reaching the Play-In and potentially earning a playoff spot could show that Phoenix is still an attractive place to play and isn't far from competing. The Suns could pick up a few wins and overtake the Dallas Mavericks, who will be without Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis for the rest of the season. Phoenix hopes some late-season competitiveness is enough to convince Booker to stay, even if Durant doesn't.

The Rockets will face the Suns twice before the end of the season as both teams try to climb in the standings. Houston will also play the Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets twice each as both teams battle for the second seed.

Los Angeles is playing with new life after the acquisition of Luka Doncic. The Lakers have increased their defensive play as well to match with their sudden offensive improvements.

The Nuggets are getting a fresh breath of air through Jamal Murray, who is returning to the play that helped Denver win its first-ever championship. Nikola Jokic has also continued his MVP campaign with another historic season.

Denver and Los Angeles are poised for a long postseason run, and home-court advantage could play a large factor for some of the league's top teams. The difference between the second and third seed looms large for some teams that believe they can contend for a title.

Another team that believes in its title contention chances is the Golden State Warriors, and they're ramping up their play to end the season. Adding Jimmy Butler sparked a new focus for the battle-tested team. Stephen Curry is playing inspired offense, and Draymond Green is playing with new energy as well.

The Warriors are looking to gain some distance from the Play-In and attempt to take over the fifth seed from the Rockets.

Houston can create distance from Golden State with a few victories against Western Conference competitors. A few defeats would mean another drop that could lead to a sixth-seed finish or worse. The stakes are high for the Rockets to end the season, but they'll play several teams who are also playing with desperation as the postseason approaches.

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