The NBA playoffs are always an exciting time due to their sheer unpredictability. A Los Angeles Lakers team down its top two scorers seemed like cannon fodder for the Houston Rockets.
However, in the span of a week, that idea has completely flipped on its head.
Down 3-0 after a heartbreaking choke at home, the Houston franchise seems to be in disarray. The roster does not appear ready at the moment, and head coach Ime Udoka is directly calling out his players.
However, some believe the only way forward for the organization could be without him.
The Ime Udoka Experiment Met With Criticism From the NBA World
Finding his flow with the Boston Celtics, Udoka turned the team from a solid team in the Eastern Conference to a Finals contender almost overnight. However, off-the-court issues pushed the team to move on from him before he quickly found a new home in Houston.
Starting a rebuild for the franchise, Udoka turned them around in two seasons, reaching the postseason as the second seed in 2024-25. But a brutal first-round playoff loss pushed the Rockets to acquire Kevin Durant.
Unfortunately, the fit wasn’t as seamless as it seemed to be on paper. The Rockets struggled mightily in the regular season, particularly in close games, which seemed like a bad omen for their postseason chances.
Now, it has manifested itself in the worst way imaginable against the Lakers. Despite missing both Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves, LA has a 3-0 lead over the Rockets, with its latest loss looking like the worst of the entire postseason.
After taking their first fourth-quarter lead of the series, Houston stretched it to 6 points with less than 30 seconds on the clock. It looked like victory was guaranteed.
But then a string of almost comical errors pushed them to overtime, where they lost 112-108.
After the game, Udoka was aghast. During the press conference, he blasted his players publicly. “Horrendous mistakes, I don’t know if you want to say youth or scared of the moment. Whatever the case, but yeah.”
Ime Udoka on the Rockets blowing a 6-point lead vs. the Lakers:
“Horrendous mistakes, I don’t know if you want to say youth or scared of the moment.” 😳😳
(via @BinkleyHoops) pic.twitter.com/v7BwHPx6gN
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) April 25, 2026
Steve Adams Stats believed it was a sign of Udoka feeling the pressure for his job. “Udoka just threw his young core under the bus for the loss at the presser. Sign of a man that knows he’s on the hot seat.”
To his defense, though, the sequence from the Rockets’ core was baffling. Without any pressure on them, the Rockets committed a careless turnover.
But even with the players committing egregious turnovers, Udoka’s comments seemed indefensible. Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports, one of the most well-respected analysts in the sport, outright said, “No accountability.”
No accountability. https://t.co/QfzblxyDTy
— Kevin O’Connor (@KevinOConnor) April 25, 2026
He wasn’t the only one, though, as national reporter Brett Siegel followed, “Throwing your team under the bus after this loss is a horrible look.”
However, Siegel wasn’t confident that Udoka had any job security issues.
When asked about it, he responded on X, “I’ll answer your question with a question: Should Ime Udoka be on the hot seat? 110%. Will he be? Probably not, but someone needs to take the blame for this horrific display of basketball.”
I’ll answer your question with a question:
Should Ime Udoka be on the hot seat? 110%.
Will he be? Probably not, but someone needs to take the blame for this horrific display of basketball.
— Brett Siegel (@BrettSiegelNBA) April 25, 2026
The Rockets fan base, though, wasn’t ready to get on board with Siegel. Sleeper Rockets didn’t mince words when stating, “Ime Udoka is 100% gone it’s incredible how poorly coached they look under him.”
Ime Udoka is 100% gone it’s incredible how poorly coached they look under him
— SleeperRockets (@SleeperRockets) April 25, 2026
It remains to be seen if Udoka’s job indeed comes under scrutiny and the Rockets make some dramatic changes to their coaching staff.
For the time being, the series isn’t officially over, even though 3-0 feels pretty decisive.
Unless he can work out a miracle, some changes are inevitable for the franchise.
