Rockets will have a painfully obvious hurdle to overcome on offense this season

As the Houston Rockets enter the 2025-26 NBA season, there is no doubt that their offense, rejuvenated by the addition of superstar Kevin Durant, will be taking on a highly different look than it did last season.

Yet, according to William Guillory of The Athletic, the Rockets will now also need to be much more careful and focused in their half-court offense as a result of the Durant trade: a fact that could cause some early season difficulties as the team attempts to adjust to its new pecking order.

Therefore, while the addition of Durant is almost certain to elevate the team's chances at competing for a title this season, there is also an easily foreseeable issue that the team will first need to overcome in order to begin their arduous journey.

The Rockets' half-court offense will likely be a struggle at the start of the season

As Houston brought in Durant, they also parted from two of their perimeter shooters and a primary playmaker in dealing Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks back to the Phoenix Suns. While very few Rockets fans would likely say that they would take this deal back, there is also a new reality to be faced for the team's offensive front.

Every player in the lineup, from Alperen Sengun to Jae'Sean Tate, will now need to adjust their game to varying degrees around the gravity that Durant will create and the attention he will draw from opposing defenses.

Moreover, according to Guillory, the team has lost some athleticism and speed with the Durant trade, and they will now need to reckon with that fact in the half-court: "... [this season] Houston will have to be more intentional about executing in half-court situations and not rely as heavily on speed and athleticism. This will benefit the Rockets once the playoffs begin, but they will likely experience some growing pains along the way."

While Durant is still one of the most efficient scorers in the league approaching the age of 37, part of the reason his game has held up so well, especially following his rehab from his devastating Achilles injury in 2019, is that he is not exclusively dependent upon his speed or explosiveness to get buckets.

Instead, Houston's offense will now need to focus much more on slower, perimeter-focused ball movement in order to get Durant the ball in his spots and, at the same time, allow him to pass out of the mid-range and perimeter to players such as Sengun and Amen Thompson who can capitalize off this gameplan.

As Guillory says, a slower pace will benefit them come playoffs, when the league as a whole slows down and places more of an emphasis on finding the right shots. Yet, at the start of the season, this could be the first major hurdle that this iteration of the Rockets faces.