Houston Rockets Entering Pivotal Stretch of Games to End the Month

Through the first half of January, this Rockets team has struggled to play with much consistency. Starting the first full month of the season with an impressive 11-2 record in November, the wins have slowly started to dwindle down as the months progress. After just barely making it through December with a winning record, StatMuse shows Houston currently standing at 3-5 in 2026. This rocky start to the new year had Rockets fans seeing their team fall to the 7th seed, although they have since climbed back out of the Play-In Tournament. Ultimately, that placement in the standings is more directly related to the Phoenix Suns losing back to back games. Relying on other teams losing is certainly not how Houston should want to make their way up in the standings —— if they want to earn themselves a home-court advantage in the playoffs, they might need to go on a win streak before this month ends. 

Currently in the midst of a five game home stand, this seems like an optimal stretch to gain some positive momentum as a team. Alperen Sengun returned from injury to help his squad start off with a much needed win against Chicago, but the second of five straight at the Toyota Center didn’t go quite as well. The rematch of a double overtime thriller on Opening Night this season was a bit of a disappointment, with fans across the league watching a 20 point loss. It’s virtually impossible to beat the reigning champs while only making 33.7-percent of your shots for a total of 91 points, per Roundtable. While nights like this happen in an arduous 82 game NBA, they’ll have to bounce back just over 24 hours later to face Minnesota on Friday. 

Though fans worldwide would probably like to see Anthony Edwards play in this matchup, it appears he’ll be sitting this game out. While this seems like it’d give Houston a better chance to win, the Timberwolves still have a 4-2 record without their superstar this season, so they can’t slack off. Minnesota is sitting relatively comfortably in the 4th seed, but defeating them would allow the Rockets to match the Lakers’ 24-15 record. Their Christmas Day victory has actually given Houston a tiebreaker, meaning they’d leapfrog LA for the 5th seed. Some possible motivation for this teetering team to pick up a win.

After a day to rest, the New Orleans Pelicans come to town for another revenge game on Sunday. In their only matchup this season, Saddiq Bey played the unlikely hero for New Orleans, helping them escape with a 133-128 overtime victory, including a 25-point comeback. Being only their 6th win of the season (5-22 up to that point), the Rockets need to avoid giving that same team their 11th win of the season. They desperately need to improve on their 12-9 record against losing teams if they hope to compete against winning teams in the long run. 

This five game home stand comes to an end with an alien invasion from San Antonio, as Victor Wembanyama the Spurs come to display their talents in the first “NBA Rivals Week” matchup. Another very key game against a team that’s been near the top of the conference all season, with them returning to Houston for another game just eight days later. Currently sitting three and a half games behind the Spurs, the outcome of those two matchups can play a big role in the final playoff seeding in April. 

With nine games still remaining this month, Houston has ample time to turn their 3-5 record around. Only three of those games are on the road, but traveling to Philly, Detroit, and Atlanta gives Houston a great challenge against eastern conference playoff teams. A nice mix of games, ending just in time for the February 5th trade deadline. This month will undoubtedly tell everyone what they need to know about the Rockets, and what moves they may or may not need to make. If more wins don’t start to pile up, I’d expect to see some moves to fortify this roster.