It is sometimes hard to see how a team is winning even though it is losing in the win-loss column, but the Houston Rockets are doing exactly that in 2022.
Winning through losses is always going to be the name of the game for the Rockets during their rebuild.
Would it be nice to win some games and make a run at the play-in? Absolutely. But that isn't going to help this team in the long run.
This Rockets team still has a mountain of growing to do before it really reaches a point where it should be competing for the playoffs or better. That growing can still come in losing, an act that gives this team a quicker way of getting better.
Tanking for a prime draft pick is a tough process. There are prospects worth tanking for in the upcoming draft, and while the Rockets might be losing and getting closer to the better chances of reaching that pick, they aren't tanking.
This team is playing a lot of young players not because they give it a better chance of getting a better pick. The young guys are on the court now because they are also going to be on the court in the future.
Playing time is the only way to help these guys grow. Jalen Green is the truth. Kevin Porter Jr. is getting more and more confident in his role every day. Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, and Alperen Sengun all have very bright futures. This is a good team down the road, it is just going to take some time for everyone to get to the proper level to actually compete, and that is okay.
If the Rockets can keep playing close games (generally) like they are but falling short in the end, getting minutes for their players of the future, and inching closer to a franchise-changing pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, this season couldn't be off to a better start.
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