Ime Udoka Talks Down To The Sacramento Kings After Latest Defeat

The Houston Rockets came into the 2025–26 season as a top contender in the Western Conference, with the expectation being that they were a genuine threat for the NBA Championship. Through their first 26 games, the Rockets sit at 17–9, putting them in sixth place in the loaded West as they continue to integrate Kevin Durant into this talented young group.

Their latest game was a tight loss at the hands of the Sacramento Kings, however, and given their expectations, it's safe to say that this game would be a major letdown. That was the sentiment expressed by head coach Ime Udoka after the game, but he took it a step further, naming the Kings as a 'lesser opponent'.

“We didn't really deserve to win that... I gotta do a better job of getting them motivated in games against lesser opponents.”

For the most part, however, Udoka takes the blame for the 125–124 defeat, taking accountability as he stating that he needs to be doing more to motivate his team against 'lesser opponents.'

With such a talented group, however, losses against teams below them in the standings have not been consistent this season, and while they're in a conference with the likes of Denver and Oklahoma City, they're still highly optimistic. Ultimately, this may sound like arrogance from Udoka as he calls out the Kings as a lesser opponent, but given the talent gap, it's easy to see why, and if they want to compete against the top teams, they need to be making bigger statements against teams like Sacramento.