The League didn't schedule a Rockets game for Christmas, but with the Lakers and Warriors losing to each other, the Rockets' eighth place in the West has become more secure. I'm afraid that before the start of the season, no one thought that the Rockets would improve so much that they could already compete for playoff qualification.
According to the data posted by **, the Rockets have ranked second in the league in defensive efficiency so far this season. The Rockets seem to have made a perfect transition, but the offensive end is almost meaningless, the Rockets are only ranked 21st in the league in 100 rounds of points this season, and even if they reach the middle position, their record will probably go to a higher level.
The Rockets are so strong on the defensive end, in fact, they have to be analyzed from two directions. First of all, head coach Amy Udoka has always been very defensive and disciplined, he played for the San Antonio Spurs when he was a player, and studied under Hall of Fame veteran Greg Popovich, Amy Udoka's coaching style is similar to Greg Popovich, any player who does not work hard defensively may be replaced and abandoned, so the whole Rockets team is very hard. At the same time, Amy Udoka showed a strong personality, and his assistant coaches during his time in the Green Army volunteered to go to the Rockets to continue to assist Amy Udoka. Obviously, the Rockets have a new look after the new coaching staff, and they have also given a lot of help to the young players.
On the other hand, the Rockets' defensive resources are actually quite sufficient. The Rockets already had Jabari Smith, Jayshawn Tate and Tari Eason on their side, and management went on a hiring spree this summer, bringing in Dillon Brooks, Jeff Green, Fred VanVleet and Aaron Holiday on the sidelines. The first two already have a tough defense, and even as guards, Fred VanVleet and Aaron Holiday are very reliable, in this case, no matter what kind of lineup the Rockets discharge, there are basically no obvious loopholes, players can help each other and fill in the position, no longer like in the past, the Rockets are fighting alone at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends, and it is naturally a mess.
Of course, you can find that when the Rocket's defense is so fierce, the ranking is not particularly high, and obviously the lack of offensive strength will restrict the upper limit of the Rocket's development. This is actually not surprising, originally most of the time, the difference in the strength of the teams is very small, that is, the ability to solve the hard problems of the stars. However, on the Rockets' side, Alperen Shenjing can be regarded as showing All-Star level strength, and others are not stable enough, or not at that level. Of course, the overall lineup of the Rockets is still young, and they are not in a hurry to produce results immediately, as long as they maintain the current momentum, the future of the Rockets is still very bright.