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The 2020–21 Houston Rockets season was the 54th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), their 50th anniversary season in the Houston area in Texas since the team franchise relocated from the San Diego area in California and their 4th season under owner Tilman Fertitta.

On September 13, Mike D'Antoni informed the Rockets that he would not return as head coach after coaching the team for four seasons. On October 30, the Rockets hired Stephen Silas as their new head coach. On October 15, Daryl Morey resigned from his position as general manager after thirteen years and Rafael Stone was named as his replacement. For the first time since 2011–12, James Harden was not on the roster as he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in a four-team deal; this reunited him with former Oklahoma City Thunder teammate Kevin Durant for the first time since the 2011–12 season.

Without Harden along with Russell Westbrook, who was traded to the Washington Wizards for John Wall during the offseason and the majority of their players lost from last season's team, the Rockets entered a rebuilding period. They got off to an 11–10 start as of February 4, 2021, but their season was marked with an franchise–worst 20–game losing streak between early–February through mid–March, which tied for the ninth longest losing streak in NBA history and the longest since the record–setting 28–game losing streak from the Philadelphia 76ers between the late 2014–15 season and the early 2015–16 season.

By April 22, the Rockets were officially eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since the 2011–12 lockout season. This ended the NBA's longest active playoff streak at eight straight years. The Rockets finished the season at the bottom of the league with a record of 17–55, the third–worst season record in franchise history and their worst season since the dreadful 14–68 record from the 1982–83 season. This season also marked the first time since the 34–48 record from the 2005–06 season that they have suffered a losing record, ending a streak of 15 straight years of finishing a season .500 or above. As a result, the Boston Celtics now hold the league's longest active playoff streak, making the playoffs every year since 2015.

Draft

The Rockets did not hold any picks for the 2020 NBA draft. This was the fourth time in franchise history that they did not hold any picks in the draft; the last time was in 2019.

Roster

2020–21 Houston Rockets roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From G 14 Augustin, D. J. 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 1987-11-10 Texas G 9 Bradley, Avery 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1990-11-26 Texas G 7 Brooks, Armoni (TW) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1998-06-05 Houston G/F 0 Brown, Sterling 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 219 lb (99 kg) 1995-02-10 SMU G 5 Exum, Dante  6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 214 lb (97 kg) 1995-07-13 Australia G 10 Gordon, Eric  6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1988-12-25 Indiana G/F 4 House, Danuel 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1993-06-07 Texas A&M F 33 Lamb, Anthony (TW) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 227 lb (103 kg) 1998-01-20 Vermont F 6 Martin, Kenyon 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 2001-01-06 IMG Academy (FL) G/F 2 Nwaba, David  6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 219 lb (99 kg) 1993-01-14 Cal Poly F/C 41 Olynyk, Kelly 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1991-04-19 Gonzaga G/F 3 Porter, Kevin 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 203 lb (92 kg) 2000-05-04 USC F 23 Reynolds, Cameron 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1995-02-07 Tulane F 8 Tate, Jae'Sean 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1995-10-28 Ohio State G 20 Thomas, Khyri 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1996-05-08 Creighton G 1 Wall, John  6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1990-09-06 Kentucky F 00 Wilson, D. J. 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 231 lb (105 kg) 1996-02-19 Michigan C 35 Wood, Christian 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 214 lb (97 kg) 1995-09-27 UNLV

Head coach Stephen Silas Assistant coach(es) DeSagana Diop Rick Higgins Jeff Hornacek John Lucas Will Weaver Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended (GL) On assignment to G League affiliate (TW) Two-way affiliate player Injured Roster Last transaction: May 19, 2021

Standings

Division

Conference

Notes

• z – Clinched home court advantage for the entire playoffs
• y – Clinched division title
• x – Clinched playoff spot
• * – Division leader

Game log

Preseason

Regular season

Player statistics

After all games.

Waived during the season
Traded during the season
Acquired during the season

Transactions

Trades

Free agency

Re-signed

Additions

Player	Signed	Former team
Mason Jones	Two-way contract / 10-day contract	Arkansas Razorbacks
Kenny Wooten	Claimed off waivers	New York Knicks
Sterling Brown	1-year contract worth $1.6 million	Milwaukee Bucks
Jae'Sean Tate	2-year contract worth $2.9 million	Sydney Kings
Brodric Thomas	Exhibit 10 contract / Two-way contract	Truman Bulldogs
Trevelin Queen	Exhibit 10 contract	New Mexico State Aggies
Jerian Grant	1-year contract worth $1.8 million	Washington Wizards
Gerald Green	1-year contract worth $2.5 million	Denver Nuggets
DeMarcus Cousins	1-year contract worth $2.3 million	Los Angeles Lakers
Trey Mourning	Exhibit 10 contract	Sioux Falls Skyforce
William McDowell-White	Two-way contract	Brose Bamberg
Josh Reaves	Exhibit 10 contract	Dallas Mavericks
Ray Spalding	Two-way contract	Charlotte Hornets
Justin Patton	Two-way contract	Westchester Knicks
Anthony Lamb	Two-way contract	Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Armoni Brooks	Two-way contract	Rio Grande Valley Vipers
DaQuan Jeffries	Claimed off waivers	Sacramento Kings
Khyri Thomas	10-day contract / 3-year contract worth $5.8 million	Austin Spurs
Cameron Oliver	10-day contract	Cairns Taipans
Cameron Reynolds	10-day contract	San Antonio Spurs

Subtractions

Player	Reason left	New team
Jerian Grant	Waived	Promitheas Patras B.C.
Trevelin Queen	Waived	Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Josh Reaves	Waived	Rio Grande Valley Vipers
William McDowell-White	Waived	Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Gerald Green	Waived	—
Trey Mourning	Waived	—
Bruno Caboclo	Waived	Limoges CSP
DeMarcus Cousins	Waived	Los Angeles Clippers
Mason Jones	Waived	Philadelphia 76ers
Ray Spalding	Waived	—
Justin Patton	Waived	—
Ben McLemore	Waived	Los Angeles Lakers
DaQuan Jeffries	Waived / Claimed off waivers	San Antonio Spurs
Cameron Oliver	Contract expired	Cairns Taipans

Awards

Jae'Sean Tate was the only player to have been named to an all-NBA team as an All-Rookie First Team Player.

References

1. "Houston Rockets Franchise Index | Basketball-Reference.com". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
2. Reynolds, Tim (September 13, 2020). "Mike D'Antoni tells Rockets he won't return as coach". NBA.com. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
3. "Rockets Name Stephen Silas Head Coach". NBA.com. October 30, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
4. "Daryl Morey stepping down as Houston Rockets GM". ESPN.com. October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
5. "Statements Regarding Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey". NBA.com. October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
6. Rieken, Kristie (October 15, 2020). "Daryl Morey stepping down as Rockets GM after 13 seasons". NBA.com. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
7. "Brooklyn-bound: Nets land Harden in blockbuster". ESPN.com. January 13, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
8. "Former Thunder players James Harden, Kevin Durant reunited in Brooklyn". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
9. The Athletic Staff. "Rockets become eighth NBA team to lose 20 consecutive games in a single season". The Athletic. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
10. Quinn, Sam (April 22, 2021). "Rockets, Timberwolves officially eliminated from playoff contention with Spurs win". cbssports.com. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
11. "2020-21 Houston Rockets Roster and Stats". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
12. "Rockets send Robert Covington to Blazers for Trevor Ariza, picks". NBA.com. November 22, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
13. "Rockets Acquire Christian Wood". NBA.com. November 24, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
14. "Rockets Acquire KJ Martin Jr". NBA.com. November 25, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
15. "Rockets trade Austin Rivers, Sergio Llull for prospect Issuf Sanon". rocketswire.usatoday.com. November 27, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
16. "Russell Westbrook traded for John Wall". NBA.com. December 2, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
17. "Rockets trade James Harden to Brooklyn Nets; acquire Victor Oladipo in subsequent deal". thedreamshake.com. June 9, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
18. "Kevin Porter Jr. Traded to Rockets from Cavaliers for 2nd-Round Pick". bleacherreport.com. January 22, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
19. "Report: P.J. Tucker Traded to Bucks; Rockets Get Augustin, 1st-Round Pick, More". bleacherreport.com. March 19, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
20. "Rockets trade two-time All-Star Victor Oladipo to Heat". yardbarker.com. March 25, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2021.

• Houston Rockets seasons
• 2020–21 NBA season by team
• 2020 in sports in Texas
• 2021 in sports in Texas
• 2020 in Houston
• 2021 in Houston