It is sometimes said, in team sport, that the players are the reflection, the extension of the mentality and ideas of their coach. This axiom works very well with Ime Udoka and the Rockets. The proof with a scene, before the start of the training camp. The coach went into detail about his group for 45 minutes, with a PowerPoint presentation.
Then, to conclude, he isolated a few images (15 to be exact) from last season, notably the one where he gets into trouble with LeBron James, or the one where he is expelled with Dillon Brooks against the Bucks.
“It’s his personality. He’s in the fight, he’s a fighter, so it was fun to see these images,” reacts Fred VanVleet to The Athletic. “It’s about building an identity for this group, this team. We are built on toughness, we do not back down from anyone. »
A coach who is not afraid of confrontation
The former Celtics coach was very clear on this last point. “We saw that, from January onwards, there was something almost every week. The television commentators said it: 'Another story in Houston, it's every match from now on'. The mentality had changed. We have to earn the respect of this league and not back down from anyone”he insists.
This is how the Rockets became the new villains of the NBA, perhaps even a less violent and more modern version, for our colleagues at The Athletic, of the “Bad Boys” of Detroit at the end of the 1980s. In any case, the defensive and physical identity of this formation is clear. And that's why the coach didn't want to recruit James Harden in 2023, because he didn't fit his vision.
Ime Udoka wanted a team of soldiers, who accepted criticism. Lately, he did not hesitate to tell Alperen Sengun – his second best scorer all the same – to stop “to cry” facing contacts. A franchise that pleases.
“It’s very rare in the NBA. Most coaches have to deal with egos and fragile personalities. We're all tense, emotional, selfish, paid a lot of money, so having a coach who says things frankly and bluntly is refreshing for me.” explains Fred VanVleet. “He won that too. He's not rude to us by any chance. He earned this relationship and trust by being a leader every day. »
“There are no friends on the ground. The coach is keen on it”
“He wants the players to play hard and if they don’t, then it’s the bench. Period. It’s that simple”adds Jeff Green. “The guys know it and don’t want to come out. So to get there, we have to change the approach, the way of seeing things. We have to be the Rockets first: there are no friends on the court. The coach is keen on it. »
This “No friends on the floor” has become a mantra: Texans are not here to please, nor to make friends. And if there are close acquaintances on the floor, then for 48 minutes, we forget feelings to prioritize victory. In that, they resemble Isaiah Thomas' Pistons, crowned in 1989 and 1990.
So far, it's working. Houston occupies third place in the Western Conference (17-8), has the second defense in the league behind Oklahoma City and finds itself in the semi-final of the NBA Cup this Saturday evening, against the Thunder.
But what do leaders think when this positive aggressiveness turns into negative attitudes, as against Sacramento recently? As a reminder, Alperen Sengun and Ime Udoka had been sent off and Tari Eason had tried to go into the stands to explain to a fan. Result: three fines for a total of $100,000…
“I am 100% comfortable with what is said or done,” assures Rafael Stone, the GM of the Rockets. “It’s understood: Ime Udoka will not back down and I don’t want him to. We collectively accept the consequences. Because the consequences, if we step back, will be much worse. We're going to be what we are and we're going to stand tall in our boots. The players, the coach, the managers, the owners: everyone. If we say we're going to do something, we do it. And no one could turn us back. »
