Houston Rockets 2024-25 NBA Championship Betting
Last year, head coach Ime Udoka arrived as the new head coach of the Houston Rockets after having to leave the Boston Celtics in disgrace due to a personal scandal. Houston rolled the dice that Udoka could quickly turn the franchise around. In his first season, Udoka ended the Rockets’ streak of three consecutive losing seasons. This year, Udoka produced the first playoff season for Houston since 2020. The Rockets have a bright future under Udoka and with players such as Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun. In the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs, Houston was eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in seven games. But that does not take away from a season of accomplishment.
2024-25 NBA Championship Betting Odds
Houston Rockets NBA Betting Lines
The Houston Rockets' final regular season record was 52-30 straight up, 42-38-2 against the spread, and 44-36 over/under the total. Houston was second in the Western Conference playoff standings, 16 games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Houston's NBA metrics were 18th for scoring offense, 21st for field goal percentage, 21st for 3-point field goal percentage, 30th for free throw percentage, and 1st for offensive rebounding. On defense, the Rockets' metrics were 5th for scoring defense, 6th for field goal percentage permitted, 11th for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 2nd for defensive rebounding.
Key Players
Last year, C Alperen Sengun led the Rockets with 21.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game. The Oklahoma City Thunder took Sengun as the 16th player in the 2021 NBA Draft out of Turkey. He began his career with the Rockets in 2021-22. This season, Sengun averaged 19.1 points and 10.3 points per game.
SG Jalen Green averaged 19.6 points per game last season. The Houston Rockets selected Green as the 2nd overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft out of Prolific Prep. He was named to the 2022 NBA All-Rookie First Team. This year, he averaged 21.0 points per game.
PG Fred Vanfleet averaged 17.4 points and 8.1 assists per game in 2023-24. Vanfleet is best known for his time with the Toronto Raptors, where he was a key asset on their 2019 NBA championship team. Vanfleet was a 2022 NBA All-Star. He went undrafted in 2016 out of Wichita State. This year, he averaged 14.1 points per game.
Head Coach
Head coach Ime Udoka is a former NBA role player who played for several teams. In his only season as a head coach, he led the 2022 Boston Celtics to the NBA Finals. However, he was forced to resign over a sex scandal with a female employee. Last year, Udoka engineered a remarkable turnaround of the Rockets. His career record is 144-102.
Season-by-Season Record (Last 7)
| SEASON |
GAMES |
WINS |
LOSSES |
FINISH |
PLAYOFFS |
| 2024–25 |
82 |
52 |
30 |
1st, Southwest |
Lost in First Round, 3–4 (Warriors) |
| 2023–24 |
82 |
41 |
41 |
3rd, Southwest |
Did Not Qualify |
| 2022–23 |
82 |
22 |
60 |
4th, Southwest |
Did Not Qualify |
| 2021–22 |
82 |
20 |
62 |
5th, Southwest |
Did Not Qualify |
| 2020–21 |
72 |
17 |
55 |
5th, Southwest |
Did Not Qualify |
| 2019–20 |
72 |
44 |
28 |
1st, Southwest |
Lost in Conference Semifinals, 1–4 (Lakers) |
| 2018–19 |
82 |
53 |
29 |
1st, Southwest |
Lost in Conference Semifinals, 2–4 (Warriors) |
Houston Rockets History
The Rockets did not start in Houston. They began as the San Diego Rockets and were the worst team in the NBA upon their inception in 1967. They went 15-67, but their first draft pick ended up being one of the greatest coaches in NBA history. Pat Riley was selected with the Rockets’ first round pick in 1967, and he ended up playing nine years in the NBA before turning his talents to coaching.
This franchise could not find success in San Diego, so the Rockets moved to Houston after just four years. They moved from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference but then returned to the West and won the conference to make their first NBA Finals appearance in their first year back in 1981. Moses Malone was the star of the team, and Calvin Murphy was solid, too. Interestingly enough, two other future coaches were on the roster in Rudy Tomjanovich and Mike Dunleavy.
Houston returned to the NBA Finals in 1986 with Hakeem Olajuwon and Ralph Sampson. The Twin Towers were tough for opponents to stop since Olajuwon was 7’0 and Sampson was 7’4, but injuries cut Sampson’s career short. However, Olajuwon went on to become the greatest player in franchise history. The Rockets were back-to-back NBA champions in 1994 and 1995 on the strength of Olajuwon teaming up with Kenny Smith, Big Shot Rob Horry, Vernon Maxwell, and Otis Thorpe.
Two more franchise stars came in the 21st Century. Yao Ming was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, and he was an All-Star in all eight of his years in the league before injuries forced him to retire at 31. The Rockets acquired James Harden from Oklahoma City in 2012, and he became an immediate star in Houston, but this team could never advance further than the Western Conference Finals.
NBA Teams
Eastern Conference - Atlantic
Eastern Conference - Central
Eastern Conference - Southeast
Western Conference - Northwest
Western Conference - Pacific
Western Conference - Southwest
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