Ime Udoka’s seat should be scorching hot after Rockets’ embarrassing start to series vs. Lakers

The way the Los Angeles Lakers have taken control of their first-round series against the Houston Rockets has raised more than a few eyebrows. With Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves out injured, most expected the series to be one-sided in the opposite direction.

However, the Rockets have shown the same vulnerabilities that were apparent all season, and have struggled to generate regular opportunities with the Lakers taking Kevin Durant out of the game. Houston has an obvious flaw in the absence of a true point guard.

Durant may be one of the best scorers in league history, but he is not the kind of playmaker Houston needs, and has struggle to generate opportunities from his teammates. Instead, the Rockets have continued to rely on isolation basketball, and the lack of shooting efficiency, combined with how the Lakers’ rotation has stepped up in the two games thus far, has led to unanswered questions from Ime Udoka.

Should Udoka be fired if the Rockets lose in the first round?

Houston, despite adding Kevin Durant to address playoff shot creation, produced 94 points in Game 2 and struggled to generate organized offense against defensive pressure. The Lakers, meanwhile, have controlled both games without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, relying on a structured defense aimed at suffocating KD.

This has led to a complete collapse of what the Rockets have tried to do. Possessions have frequently defaulted to isolation play through Durant or Alperen Sengun without consistent off-ball movement and secondary creation. Houston has struggled to adjust to the defensive schemes LeBron and co. have thrown at them, and unless things change quickly, the series may as well be over before it goes to LA again.

Of course, the credit also lies with the Lakers, with their approach resulting in as many as nine turnovers from Durant alone in Game 2. Hence, while the Lakers have used a structured, system-driven defense to suffocate Durant and co., the Rockets have failed to find the counter despite being the best rebounding team in the league through the regular season.

Further, Houston’s rotation decisions have reduced offensive flexibility, most notably with limited minutes for playmaking options such as Reed Sheppard (11 minutes in a low-scoring playoff game). At the same time, lineup structures have placed non-primary initiators in primary creation roles, including Durant handling pressure at half court and Amen Thompson functioning as a point guard despite his interior strengths.

Across the season, Houston has posted strong statistics. They have an offensive rating of 118.5 and boast of a +6.1, per Basketball Reference. However, that did not translate into regular wins as they have regularly been found without offensive answers, especially when the likes of Sengun and Durant receive increased defensive attention. This was also evident in their historic loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves when they became the first team in nearly three decades to lose despite a 13-point lead in overtime.

Further, the Rockets added Durant after a season that saw them finish as the No. 2 seed. Despite notable strengths and a defensive rating of 113.2 in the regular season, problems around half-court shot creation and a lack of true playmakers continue to haunt them, and may as well result in an early exit. This is not down to personnel alone, and is also a result of the coaching staff not recognizing the issues.

On the other hand, the Lakers seem to have done their homework and have deployed exactly the right strategy to limit Houston’s offense. Udoka may want to point out that Fred VanVleet’s injury threw a spanner in the works, and his presence may as well have helped the Rockets compete much better.

However, against a team missing their top-2 scorers, the Rockets have allowed a 41-year-old LeBron James to dominate proceedings and have not merely struggled offensively. They have also found no answers to the increased output of the Lakers’ rotation, and all of those issues may as well result in increased pressure on the HC’s job.

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