The Rockets announced their presence as a title contender this week, but everyone is still chasing Oklahoma City in the West. 1. Oklahoma City Thunder (37-8, Last Week No. 1). The Thunder went 3-2 in this stretch of games without either Chet Holmgren or Isaiah Hartenstien,

The Houston Rockets defeated the Atlanta Hawks last night, 100-96. The win comes on the second half of a back-to-back, as the Rockets defeated the Boston Celtics in TD Garden the previous night. This win at State Farm Arena was yet another test, as Houston has built a legitimate resume this season.

Alexander's second 50-point game of the season wasn't enough to lift the Oklahoma City Thunder in their 116-109 loss to the Golden

Despite sitting in second place in the Western Conference and boasting a haul of future draft picks, the Houston Rockets don't seem like they will

The Houston Rockets just completed a two-game sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers, the NBA's top team, at least record-wise. The Rockets are the only team to defea

Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. Josue got his start as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com. He grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media, where he is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.

HOUSTON — "That was my first game-winner! I feel like Kobe," said 21-year-old Amen Thompson in a quote circulating among Houston sports fans. During Monday night's game against the Celtics, Thompson scored a career-high 33 points on 13-of-19 shooting. The game itself had a playoff atmosphere for several reasons.

To Amen Thompson's surprise, with five seconds left in a tied midseason game against the defending NBA champions, Houston Rockets coach Ime Udoka called a play for the second-year forward. "I liked the matchup,

In 10 home games at Toyota Center versus the NBA’s other top teams, the Rockets are 9-1. Players such as Fred VanVleet are noticing.

As of Sunday night, the Rockets are sixth in the league in net rating at +6.1. Their defense is third in the league with a defensive rating of 107.3. But the offense has now crept all the way up to eleventh league-wide with an offensive rating of 113.4. Houston is inching closer to having both a top 10 defense and offense.

The Nets got a look at the team they hope to be one day during Sunday's blowout loss to the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

A week before the NBA's trade deadline, USA TODAY Sports looks at where teams stand and their chances of winning the title: