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Jalen Green delivered Houston Rockets fans with a memorable performance in Game 2 of their first-round series against the Golden State Warriors. With the Rockets back in the playoffs for the first time since 2020, Green scored 38 points with eight triples to pull off a 109-94 victory and even the series after Golden State had won Game 1 in Houston.
This appeared to be a pivotal moment not only in this series against the Warriors but for the Rockets' long-term future.
Although he scored just seven points in the first game of this series, Green had come into his own in Game 2 and looked to finally be Houston's top scoring option in the playoffs, becoming the first Rockets player to score at least 30 points in a playoff game since James Harden did so in 2020.
“That first game, the lights were bright, the court looked huge. I couldn't really get a chance to settle in, my legs were a little shaky,” Green admitted after his 38-point night. “That's part of it. [But] I feel like I did a good job of answering back.”
All the momentum that the Rockets had squandered in Game 1 to the Warriors was taken right back. Green had all the confidence he needed, and the Rockets appeared to have figured out the flow of their offense against Golden State.
That is when momentum shifted again, resulting in Green's Game 2 performance being nothing more than a thing of the past.
Houston lost Game 3 by 11 points, followed by a 109-106 loss in Game 4 to fall into a 3-1 hole. Green scored just 17 points combined in the two games. While the Rockets were able to trounce the Warriors in Game 5, leading by as many as 31 points, Green only had 11 points in this game. He then had only 12 points in the Rockets' 115-107 Game 6 win on the road facing elimination.
Despite Green's lackluster performances, Houston put itself in a position to come back from a 3-1 deficit and win this series against its bitter rivals. On their home floor and Green having yet another chance to deliver, all momentum was in favor of the Rockets.
Once again, it was time for the young guard to have his moment and truly become the star his organization believes he could be. Green could redeem himself for all of his mishaps against the Warriors and keep the Rockets' playoff hopes alive with a grand performance in Game 7 in front of the rowdy Houston faithful.
That did not happen, as all of the success Houston found during the 2024-25 season was thrown out the door with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green reminding this organization of their playoff dominance.
Jalen Green's playoff struggles too much for Rockets to overcome
The Rockets lost 103-89 in Game 7 on Sunday night, resulting in them failing to make it out of the first round of the playoffs as the 2-seed in the West.
Although Houston was able to win two straight elimination games with great resilience and force a Game 7 at home, Golden State proved to be too much. Besides their championship experience and having two of the best closers in the league with Curry and Jimmy Butler, plus a shocking Buddy Hield performance, the Rockets' lack of offensive playmaking was fatal in Game 7.
More specifically, Green's disappearance after Game 2 loomed large.
As well as Amen Thompson, Alperen Sengun and Fred VanVleet played at times in this series, they couldn't lift the team past Golden State because Green was a no-show for all but one game in the series.
Green had 38 points in the Rockets' Game 2 win but combined for only 55 points in the other six games of this series, failing to score more than 12 points in any game. It was clear that Green's struggles directly resulted in Houston losing to the Warriors.
“I don’t think I’ve played good at all, for real,” Green said before Game 6 on Friday, via Kelly Iko of The Athletic. “I had one game at the crib which was pretty good, but overall, I haven’t really been myself. But that’s okay. First time experience, just gotta get back to being aggressive and stop overthinking.”
But those were Green's problems that the Warriors consistently exposed: his lack of playoff experience and passive play on offense.
This was a prime opportunity for Green and the Rockets to prove that what they have been building over the last few seasons is sustainable. Now, after his questionable performances, Houston enters the offseason facing uncertainty about what its core should look like.
Green understands he played a role in his team coming up short against the Warriors, and he recognized this in his postgame comments following the Game 7 loss on Sunday.
“Besides the (second) home game, s**t,” Green said of his series. “Straight s**t. I got to be better. First playoffs is no excuse.
“Yeah, I’ve got to be better.”
Since Harden was traded, Rafael Stone and the Rockets' front office have done a fantastic job of assembling a young, athletic roster that can matchup with basically any team in the league. Head coach Ime Udoka then took this undisciplined squad and turned them into a real, contending threat in the West.
Green and Sengun are just two of the main high-potential players Houston has added in recent years. Thompson had a breakout season, and he was even better in this series against the Warriors. Tari Eason continues to elevate his play, and Jabari Smith Jr. still has a lot of room for growth as a stretch power forward.
The Rockets' future is very bright, yet Green's struggles in his first postseason are concerning given his inconsistencies throughout the 2024-25 season. More times than not, Green established himself as the Rockets' go-to scoring option. Then again, there were times he would disappear on offense.
That constant back-and-forth of having good games and bad games left the Rockets feeling uneasy during the regular season. Now that these scoring woes made their way to the playoffs, Green's future is very much worth discussing.
What is Houston's next step?
Losing in the first round, especially to the Warriors, was not how the Rockets envisioned their season ending.
This young team had achieved so much. It appeared as if they were on a similar path to that of the Thunder in terms of having a youthful group on the rise in the West. Against an older, veteran squad like the Warriors, Houston liked its odds despite falling into a 3-1 hole.
The only difference between the Thunder and Rockets is that Houston isn't fully committed to its roster as is.
Over the last several seasons, there have been multiple instances of star players being linked to the Rockets. After all, this organization has a great history and winning culture. Owner Tilman Fertitta picked Stone and Udoka to lead his team because he had a vision for becoming a true title threat once Harden left.
Stone has been a huge advocate for the young core he has built through the years. It seemed like he made it evidently clear that the Rockets weren't having doubts about Green and Sengun last summer when both players received multi-year extensions.
Everyone has been on the same page internally about building a contending roster through the draft, and that is what the Rockets have achieved. Sengun made his first All-Star appearance this season, and Green averaged over 20 points per game for the second time in his career.
It does not appear as if Houston is prepared to overreact from losing in the playoffs after not being there since 2020. Then again, there are obvious questions that will need to be answered about the team's financial position and whether now is the right time to leverage assets to improve their championship outlook.
Green signed a three-year, $105 million extension with the Rockets last summer to remain with the team through the 2027-28 season. At the time, this contract extension came when external noise surrounding Houston pointed in the direction of the possible pursuit of star players.
There were some rumors about the Rockets potentially being interested in dealing Green to the Brooklyn Nets for Mikal Bridges, but nothing ever came of this. Bridges was then traded to the New York Knicks in a deal that involved multiple first-round picks.
It is easy to say that Stone, Udoka, and Fertitta are all at peace with the idea of continuing to build for the future. After all, this was the group's first playoff appearance together, and they were on the verge of overcoming a 3-1 deficit to a team that has won four of the last 10 NBA Finals.
Udoka has also never once complained about what his young team is capable of achieving. He is of the mindset that there are multiple All-Star-level talents in development on this roster.
“We're all on the same page as far as what we have in our organization and wanting to see it through and seeing what all these young guys can become,” Udoka told Tim MacMahon of ESPN. “When you have this many high draft picks, you want to see who becomes what. I understood when I came to take the job that we were going to try to develop these guys and see what we can get to. I think they've all shown growth and potential.
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“And the next step is, who can be that consistent leader for us?”
That is the big question that needs to be answered this summer in Houston. While Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks have been the veteran leaders of the team, neither player is perceived as a true “alpha.”
The Thunder have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Warriors have Stephen Curry. The Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers have Nikola Jokic and Kawhi Leonard, respectively.
Who is that top guy in Houston?
As good as it may sound to rattle off a few different names who can step up throughout a series, that won't translate to postseason success for Houston.
Every successful team that goes on to win a championship has a clear sta they can play through at any moment in the game on offense. Sengun, Green, Thompson, and VanVleet have all had their moments of being “that guy” during the regular season.
In the playoffs against the Warriors, Thompson seemed to be the only one to emerge as a star of the future as those 38 points Green scored in Game 2 were quickly forgotten when the Rockets walked off the court with their heads hanging low following the Game 7 loss to Golden State.
Stone and the Rockets have said multiple times that they believe in the group they've assembled and won't sacrifice a chunk of what they have built through the years when All-Stars become available in offseason trade talks.
But what happens when Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo are being brought up in connection with the Rockets this summer?
Giannis' future with the Milwaukee Bucks is certainly in question with Damian Lillard out due to an Achilles injury and his team losing in the first round of the playoffs for the third straight year. Durant will come up in plenty of offseason trade talks too after the Phoenix Suns danged him out in the open at the trade deadline. This also won't be the first time Durant has heard his name come up in connection with Houston.
If there is a realistic path to landing either Antetokounmpo or Durant this offseason, will the Rockets be forced to take it?
Rockets' position to pursue Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo
It is not surprising to see the Rockets being linked to Durant and Antetokounmpo before the offseason has even started.
Houston has always been an attractive destination for star players, and that will be even more relevant coming off this seven-game series against the Warriors. Thompson appears to be a two-way All-Star in the making, and Sengun recently made his first All-Star appearance at 22 years old.
But what does the future hold for Green? Can he step up and be the third horseman next to Thompson and Sengun to solidify the Rockets' future?
Perhaps the bigger question that needs to be answered is how long Houston is willing to wait on this young group before attempting to make a real championship move.
Durant is 36 years old and entering the final year of his contract. While he seems to make a lot of sense as the veteran superstar for a team like the Rockets to invest in, he would not come at a cheap price.
The Phoenix Suns have signaled to rival teams that they aren't going to be giving Durant away for any value they can get, as Mat Ishbia understands any trade involving Durant instantly makes his rivals a contending threat. That argument would be even more relevant if Ishbia and the Suns were to trade Durant to a Western Conference team.
Overall, the main reason Durant is being linked to the Rockets is because Stone stole a handful of the Suns' first-round picks in recent years. Should the Rockets leverage some of the Suns' own picks and a player like Green in a package to land Durant?
On the other side of things, Giannis is 30 years old and would fit the Rockets' long-term future much better than Durant. His future is suddenly in question after the Milwaukee Bucks failed to make it out of the first round in the Eastern Conference for the third straight season.
If requests a trade from Milwaukee, Antetokounmpo would be the most pursued superstar on the trade market. Houston would certainly be at the forefront of those trade rumors because the Bucks need youth and draft picks. That is exactly what the Rockets have moving forward, and now they must decide whether to pursue a big splash after this playoff series revealed some harsh truths.
It is obvious that Thompson and Sengun both need more time to truly come into their own as it relates to playoff excellence. Unfortunately for Houston, experience mattered in this first-round series against Golden State, and the youth in both their starting lineup and on the bench showed signs of mental weakness late in the series.
Growth will come in time, and the good news is that the Rockets have plenty of it. Then again, perhaps it makes more sense to sacrifice some of that time regarding Green and draft picks to pursue a player like Durant or Giannis.
The Rockets will enter the offseason with roughly $194 million in projected salaries. That puts them right below the first apron with a decision to make about VanVleet's $44.8 million team option. There is no doubt that the Rockets want to keep VanVleet for the foreseeable future, but whether or not they will look to restructure his deal now is a key question that will be answered.
This is a young team with a bright future. It is easy to overreact after playoff losses, especially in a Game 7 after coming back down 3-1 to a team like the Warriors. Houston truly believed it was going to win this series, which is why this loss stings so much.
As bad as Green was in terms of scoring, he did find other ways to impact the game and help extend the series to seven games. This young core still has a lot of potential, and Green could still be a huge part of the organization's success moving forward. After all, they wouldn't have been a 52-win team and claim the 2-seed in the West without the fourth-year guard continuing to improve.
Time is on the Rockets' side after losing in the first round of the playoffs, but the question now becomes whether Stone and Fertitta will sacrifice time to try and escalate a championship window this young core has cracked open. As a result, Green's future with the Rockets will loom large in Houston this offseason.
