Ime Udoka's secret weapon could be limited this season for the Rockets

The Houston Rockets, throughout this offseason, have been lauded for building out one of the most versatile rotations in the NBA, creating significant wing depth and allowing themselves the flexibility to operate with almost any play style given the number of combinations present within their roster.

Yet, according to Ben DuBose on the latest episode of The Lager Line podcast, their infamous double-big lineup, featuring Alperen Sengun and Steven Adams, could still be limited in its usage despite its profound effectiveness down the stretch last season.

As the team attempts to determine its fifth starter, DuBose makes the argument that Adams, as a non-shooter, is too risky a proposition to start, meaning that the double-big lineup will remain a situational matchup that head coach Ime Udoka could be hesitant to lean on extensively.

The Rockets' double-big lineup could be limited by its lack of shooting

As Houston enters the 2025-26 NBA season, their depth at center and forward represents one of their major strengths. Their combination of Sengun, Adams and offseason signing Clint Capela present a variety of skill-sets in the paint, and their forward combinations of Kevin Durant, Tari Eason, Jabari Smith Jr. and Dorian Finney-Smith present almost limitless combinations to plug into the starting lineup.

Yet, one question that remains on everyone's mind is the continued viability of the double-big lineup. According to DuBose, although Adams is an option to take the fifth starting spot at times, it is likely that Udoka strays away from turning to the lineup in beginning-of-game situations: "I don't think they necessarily want the double-big to be an every game thing... A lot of success in the NBA comes down to maximizing your best players, and, I know they're high IQ, but Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson, Steven Adams, none of them are shooters right now."

As the Rockets have revamped their rotation, they have certainly attempted to bolster their perimeter shooting. Durant, who is still largely a mid-range scorer, shot 43% from beyond the arc last year, and Finney-Smith, as a 3-and-D player, shot 41.1%.

While the double-big lineup produced effective results, and Sengun and Adams posted an absurd net rating of 32.7 in the minutes they were on the court together last season, running those two in the same line-up severely limits the team's shooting capabilities, especially if someone like Thompson is on the court as well.

In the NBA, it is incredibly difficult to succeed on offense when you have three non-shooters on the floor. Therefore, although the double-big lineup will likely remain in use this season, it is highly improbable that Adams will get the nod for the starting job except in very select situations, limiting the usage of Udoka's secret weapon to highly matchup-dependent scenarios.