Houston Rockets BEST & WORST Playoff Matchups? Jalen Green & Alperen Sengun Ready For Postseason?

34 Comments

1. 

   @LockedOnRockets 12 months ago

   Which teams do YOU think are the BEST & WORST possible first round matchups for the Rockets?

2. 

   @brettdryburg8857 12 months ago

   Go Rockets!

3. 

   @hobowithagun24 12 months ago

   Can’t stand this clutchfans guy. You already know he’s gonna take a massive shit on ALP this episode. Been like that since the rockets drafted him

4. 

   @brettdryburg8857 12 months ago

   Go HOUnds!

5. 

   @jasonh9787 12 months ago

   The rockets would 100% lose to the Lakers and Warriors

6. 

   @Spaceage713 12 months ago

   Get ready 4 teams to involve Alpie in the pick n roll….it's definitely coming in the playoffs

7. 

   @d00minic_ 12 months ago

   The best matchup for me on a FAIR playing field would be the Lakers. No perimeter defense and worse interior defense.
   LAC will be a dark horse match up. Scary team to be against even if we beat them on all matchups because they're too deep.
   The worst matchup that we could get is OKC and GSW. We aren't built to beat good shooting teams with gritty defensive perimeter defense.

8. 

   @Nelisaac 12 months ago

   I don’t want the rockets to play the warriors or the wolves in the first round

9. 

   @cemakyurek8918 12 months ago

   Send the nuggets

10. 

    @jalenjohnson0339 12 months ago

    Our best matchup would probably be Memphis, Clippers or Minnesota.

    Memphis and Minnesota due to the amount defenders we can throw at ANT and Ja and the Clippers I think we have the better overall team if Kawhi shows up in the playoffs then that could be a different story.

    Don’t feel good about the Lakers mainly because of Luka and how they can abuse the pick and roll on our bigs.

    The Warriors I hate to say it would be a bad matchup due to their ball movement and shooting.

    Denver is the same thing in reality because of Jokic is capable of tearing apart a defense by himself with his passing and his scoring ability.

    So yeah those are my thoughts pretty much

11. 

    @shoulderbladez44 12 months ago

    I think Jabari needs to start getting more minutes playing Center to prepare for the playoffs. Ofc the double big lineup is great and all, but if we play certain teams/lineups in the playoffs it will be difficult to keep Alpi on the floor defensively and Jabari needs more practice at the 5.

12. 

    @higherheights3105 12 months ago

    If our shots start dropping in the playoffs, we're going to upset a lot of people.

13. 

    @DunyaLideri-lj3ly 12 months ago

    Alp should ask for a trade this summer..

14. 

    @user-cg3tx8zv1h 12 months ago

    I simply don't understand the obsession with 'the post-game' experience. The essence of baskerball is the game itself—you play, and that's it! The only element that carries any real significance is the psychological aspect, which has been exaggerated and mythologized by media coverage. This elaborate 'post-game' narrative is created because the NBA's popularity is partly driven by its storytelling aspects. I understand why media exists! It's business…
    
    But it is this strange mythology that develops around playoff experience, as if players somehow transform into different beings once the postseason begins. It's still basketball. The same players are using the same skills they've honed all season. The court dimensions don't change, the ball doesn't get heavier, and the rules remain the same.
    
    The tactics are different. The tactical adjustments in playoffs are real – series play does allow for more specific game planning – but good coaches make tactical adjustments throughout the regular season too, even quarter by quarter.

    What's particularly interesting to me about this media narrative is how selective (phony) it is. When a team with "playoff experience" loses to a younger team, suddenly the conversation shifts to "fresh legs" or "hunger." When veterans win, it's all about "they've been here before." It's a convenient narrative that can be twisted to explain any outcome after the fact.
    
    I think this speaks to a broader issue in sports media where creating dramatic narratives often takes precedence over substantive analysis of the actual gameplay. It's much easier to talk about intangibles like "playoff experience" than to break down complex defensive rotations or offensive sets.
    
    Sports media creates these stories—like the mystique of "playoff experience"—and fans often internalize them completely. Then you hear the same talking points repeated at sports bars, in group chats, and on social media as if they're established facts. It's a cycle that reinforces itself: media creates narratives, fans repeat them, which validates the media's approach, leading to more of the same content.
    The actual nuances of the game—the tactical adjustments, the execution of fundamentals under pressure, the matchup exploitation—get overshadowed by these simpler, more dramatic storylines.

    It is so ridicilous how these narratives persist even when they're contradicted by what happens on the court. A team with "no playoff experience" makes a deep run, and instead of questioning the importance of playoff experience, the narrative just shifts to something else—"they're too young to know they're supposed to be nervous" or some other explanation that preserves the original mythology. Basketball at its core is still about putting the ball in the hoop more often than your opponent. Everything else is just packaging.

15. 

    @TheChuen 12 months ago

    Go Rockets!!!

16. 

    @RIFICA777 12 months ago

    Uncle Jeff has Championship experience ….

17. 

    @RIFICA777 12 months ago

    How long Amen out?

18. 

    @altncmn 12 months ago

    It is very refreshing to talk about playoff matchups this early in the season's end.

19. 

    @TheChuen 12 months ago

    And I absolutely agree that We don't want our season ends by the Warriors… Not them, please…

20. 

    @ffbeexaid4509 12 months ago

    Gonna be 5 vs 8 from now all players need to bring their A game.

21. 

    @bruhmoment-ni7ef 12 months ago

    Unfollow because of guest!

22. 

    @gregorywilliams9134 12 months ago

    Warriors vs Rockets is must-see TV. I definitely want the Rockets to play them and send them home running 🏃

23. 

    @aleksandarradovanovic8496 12 months ago

    The Rockets are very talented and with huge potential but very inexperienced with huge oscillations from game to game.

    Make no mistake, every other team will hope for the Rockets as their first round opponent. Whether Hou is gonna make those teams regret or not… we will see.

    By the way, don't speak too soon about rockets not being able to meet the thunder. We are still not safe from play in

24. 

    @aleksandarradovanovic8496 12 months ago

    And I agree with Dave… people should be very patient in regards to this team possibilities. Remember Cleveland after signing Mitchell? That team was twice as strong as Rockets are now… and it took them 2-3 seasons to figure it out and come to this level, After a couple embarrassing and subpar playoff efforts

25. 

    @Fetemart 12 months ago

    Honestly, the only teams that make me scared (nervous) are GSW and OKC. Denver slightly because of Jokic, but I believe the Rockets athleticism and depth can eventually wear them down over a seven game series.

26. 

    @seanali6427 12 months ago

    Go Rockets. Jackson, I have a question for you. Do you think Coach Udoka needs to do a better job of resting his high usage players like Jalen and Alpi. I will use a baseball analogy. For example, you can rest a baseball player by using him as the designated hitter for that day. As a result, you get the benefits of his bat in the lineup, but you can rest his legs. Similarly, the Rockets can have one of the starters come off the bench, but be in the lineup to close the game . As a result, you might be able to reduce that player's minutes by 10 from 38 to 28 .Numbers don't lie, and Amen is a perfect example of that. You can tell that Amen Thompson was completely drained before the all-star break. His ankle injury might be a blessing in disguise. He might be a little rusty, but he will be fully rested. Hopefully he would use this time to work on his 3 point shooting. Jabari, Tari and Fred are fully rested for the playoffs. Kobe Bryant once said that there are ways to rest during a game. Because Alpi and Green are the Rockets high usage players coach Udoka can find ways to rest them during the game. For example, having the big lineup with Adams can rest Alpi from having to defend the bruising center s from the opposing team. Similarly to the way the San Antonio Spurs used Tim Duncan and David Robinson. My only problem is that during the Philly game Coach Udoka didn't go inside to the big's enough to punish the opposing team's smaller player's. If the opposing team decides to double and triple team the big's, the other players need to be ready to shoot those open 3's. I feel that you need to assert your will on the opposing team, and have them adjust to you. However, I understand why Coach Udoka went to the smaller lineup to be able to switch, and counter the smaller and faster lineup. Having said that, the Rockets need to take advantage of the paint from the go, if they are included to use the double big lineup.

27. 

    @brandonthomas4175 12 months ago

    I really wanna face the Warriors. Tari Eason hates them and we got a bunch of dogs on our squad to actually take them down this go around. This aint the James Harden/Mike Dantoni Era. These young guys ready for it…i wanna beat them so bad

28. 

    @keithpeterson9000 12 months ago

    As a Wolves fan, you are not wrong about Conley showing his age. But he has been resting a lot with Divincenzo & NAW playing the point with elite defense. Wolves have 3 players 6’9” in Naz, McDaniels, & Randle which have length and rim protection. What the Wolves hate is Houston has Dillion Brooks & Steve Adams from that ‘21-‘22 Memphis Grizzlies team that eliminated Wolves in playoffs in rough physical knock down drag out series. Wolves would rather play Memphis or Denver 1st round, but Rockets more even challenge than fresh healthy Luka, Lebron, SGA, or Steph Curry in 1st round

29. 

    @cliftonbrisby5531 12 months ago

    Shouldn't make no different who they play. Playoff great . Everyone should be skid of rockets !!!!

30. 

    @bronsontehau722 12 months ago

    Need Steven Adams to start to make a legitimate push

31. 

    @mustafasanane237 12 months ago

    Every play off team's dream match up is houston.

32. 

    @Carlos_A_Garcia 12 months ago

    Mavs have no shot at 7. They would have to end in either 7th or 8th and win first play in game. They will be lucky end 10th

33. 

    @pokehesab2491 12 months ago

    best scenarios Clippers & Grizzlies
    worst scenarios Thunder & Timberwolves
    Fifty Fifty scenarios Lakers & Nuggets & Warriors

34. 

    @MsA0301789 12 months ago

    The warriors cheated in the 2018 WCF