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Houston Rockets

The numbers are clear: Patrick Beverley deserves to start over Jeremy Lin

While critics hammer the Rockets for benching Jeremy Lin, the numbers paint an entirely different picture: Patrick Beverley is the best fit as the starter.

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Patrick Beverley and Jeremy Lin

No longer a debate: Patrick Beverley has established himself as the clear starter in Houston

The five most-watched videos ever on ClutchFans are as follows: Three Jeremy Lin highlights, a Jeremy Lin interview and a clip of Patrick Beverley being thrown to the floor.

So trust me when I say I know what many fans want to hear. I know how easy it would be right now to be that pageview-pushing troll who writes that Kevin McHale has an irrational dislike of Jeremy Lin and is killing a championship team because of it.

Unfortunately I can’t do that, because it’s just not true.

Jeremy Lin should not start for the Houston Rockets. That job belongs to Patrick Beverley right now, and frankly, it’s not even a close call anymore.

When Beverley went down with a fractured hand in December, expected to be out four to six weeks, it gave Jeremy Lin the perfect opportunity to show he was the right fit in the starting lineup. After all, the criticism coming from some of Lin’s fans was that there was no way of knowing how Lin would do in the same position, if given the same starting opportunity.

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First, we have to understand what makes up the starting lineup. James Harden, Dwight Howard and Chandler Parsons are absolute locks. The Rockets are thin at power forward options, but Terrence Jones has emerged and is developing rapidly. He has been the starter for over two months and, barring trade, that’s not going to change anytime soon.

So that’s the gig in Houston: The point guard that maximizes and complements this starting core is the one that should start.

Take a look at how those four have done with Beverley compared to with Lin. The results so far show that the Rockets were right all along to start Patrick out of the gate this season.

Patrick Beverley vs. Jeremy Lin

Keep in mind, this is only the data with those players, so last night’s incredible +26 performance from Beverley — a game where it was blatantly obvious the kind of impact he has on this team — doesn’t even factor in since Terrence Jones didn’t play.

What this shows us is that per 100 possessions, Houston’s starting core with Beverley outproduces opponents by nearly nine points more than the same four players with Jeremy Lin. In fact, the Beverley lineup has the third-highest Net Rating in the NBA among lineups that have logged 200 or more minutes, trailing only the starting lineups for the Warriors and Pacers. Not only are the Rockets better defensively with Beverley, they have outproduced the Lin-led lineup on offense as well. Why? Because the Rockets move the ball better, rebound better, shoot better and turn the ball over less.

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“Patrick gives you a point of attack defender that can get up and get into people, change them, make them go different directions and that’s really important,” said McHale. “And Patrick has got a little bit of a swagger to him. He kind of walks out there on the floor like he’s ready to go every single night, and you need that.”

Furthermore, Jeremy Lin’s individual play off the bench behind Harden and Beverley has been much more efficient compared to when he starts at point guard alongside Harden.

In 17 games as a starter next to Houston’s star two guard, Lin is shooting 43.5% and just 28.6% from three for 12.9 points a night in 32.9 minutes. Coming off the bench? Lin is hitting 48.9% from the field and 34.4% from three for 12.6 points per game in 27.1 minutes. That’s essentially the same point total in nearly six minutes less a night.

“One of the challenges with our starting lineup is, with James and Dwight and others in that lineup, it’s hard for (Jeremy) to be in full attack mode and that’s when we think he’s at his best,” said Rockets GM Daryl Morey on SportsTalk 790 last week.

In other words, Beverley is the better fit as the starter. Lin is the better fit as the Sixth Man.

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Why do the critics insist the Rockets start an inferior five-man lineup? That’s a good question.

Granted, this article won’t stop some of Lin’s fanatics from continuing to claim that the Rockets have it in for one Jeremy Lin. Just understand they’re wrong. Dead wrong. Because McHale starting Beverley over Lin isn’t bias or hate.

It’s just math.

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Armed with a bizarre fascination for Mario Elie and a deep love of the Houston Rockets, Dave Hardisty started ClutchFans in 1996 under the pen name “Clutch”.

Houston Rockets

Postgame Show: Reed Sheppard thrives as Rockets finish preseason 4-0

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Reed Sheppard Houston Rockets vs Atlanta Hawks 10/16/2025

It’s been a mixed bag for Rockets second-year guard Reed Sheppard, but Thursday night, his potential was on full display.

With several key players — Kevin Durant, Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr., Alperen Sengun, Steven Adams, Clint Capela — sitting out, Reed Sheppard led the B-Team in Atlanta and feasted, hitting 12-22 shots for 29 points, including 5-13 from three-point range. He added 4 steals, 3 blocks, 6 assists and 6 rebounds.

Ben Dubose and I discussed the preseason, Reed’s strong showing, the clock running down on Tari Eason’s extension and the regular season opener this Tuesday in Oklahoma City.

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Houston Rockets

SI: Kevin Durant wants Houston to be his final NBA stop

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Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant is on the cover of the upcoming November print issue of Sports Illustrated. That issue is the iconic magazine’s official 2025-26 basketball preview.

Written by NBA writer Chris Mannix, the cover story profiles how trading for the All-Star forward in the 2025 offseason could have the Rockets poised for championship contention. Excerpts were released to ClutchFans for promotional purposes.

“I think other teams valued growing their younger players and draft picks,” Durant says of his offseason trade. “I’m a veteran, [now] 37 years old, with a high price tag. Not a lot of people in the league wanted to make that move to change the franchise and add me to the equation.”

And now that Durant is in Houston, he clearly doesn’t want it to be a short-term move.

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Among Durant’s comments to Mannix:

I felt like this team is on the brink of being a consistent playoff team. I wanted to be a part of it.

I’m looking to be here as long as I can, play my last years of my career. That’s the intent. I would love to do that. I mean, I’m 37 years old and I’m going on 19 years in the league. I want to be solidified in a spot and build with a team with a group of guys that’s going to be around for a while. So hopefully this is it.

I’m getting older, but I just feel like I got a lot to look forward to. I feel like I’ve done a lot as well. I’m content, but I want more, as weird as that sounds.

One reason for Durant’s happiness is his relationship with head coach Ime Udoka, who was a top assistant when the future Hall of Famer played for the Brooklyn Nets earlier this decade.

Udoka “is just real and to the point,” Durant told SI’s Mannix. “There’s no sugarcoating.”

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Part of that “real” is humility. As Mannix explains, Udoka has already made it clear that he doesn’t want Durant’s teammates to be star-struck, and particularly not impressionable young players such as Alperen Sengun, Jabari Smith Jr., Amen Thompson, and Reed Sheppard.

“Don’t take a backseat to anybody,” Udoka says of his message to other Rockets. “It’s not the Kevin Durant Show because he’s here now. The biggest growth is going to come internally, from our young guys.”

The complete cover story from SI’s Mannix can be read here.

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Postgame Show: Rockets fight off Pelicans, Jabari Smith Jr. shows out

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Jabari Smith Jr. vs Zion Williamson

Jabari Smith Jr. really does look different this year.

Jabari showed out Tuesday night as the Rockets beat the New Orleans Pelicans 130-128 to improve to 3-0 in the preseason. The Rockets close out the practice games Thursday against the Hawks before opening the regular season this coming Tuesday against the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

Jabari looked confident — he was very aggressive Tuesday night, scoring 24 of his 26 points in the first half in less than 20 minutes of play. He hit 4-10 from deep.

Ben Dubose and I discussed the game live in postgame: Jabari’s impressive showing, the big lineup getting the starting nod, Kevin Durant displaying his closer credentials and the skirmish/fight that broke out between Amen Thompson and Jose Alvarado.

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Houston Rockets

NBA GMs see big season ahead for rising Rockets star Amen Thompson

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As part of the annual NBA GM survey, NBA.com’s John Schuhmann polls the top decision-makers for each of the league’s 30 teams.

Poll topics include the best teams, players, coaches, and offseason moves, with general managers not allowed to vote for their own team or personnel. Percentages are based on the pool of respondents to that particular question and not necessarily all 30 general managers.

As for the 2025-26 Houston Rockets, one consistent theme was third-year guard Amen Thompson, who featured repeatedly in the GM survey.

Here’s a rundown of where Thompson was represented:

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Player most likely to have a breakout season: Amen Thompson at No. 1 (30%)
Best perimeter defender in NBA: Amen Thompson at No. 3 (22%)
Most versatile defender in NBA: Amen Thompson at No. 1 (18%)
Most athletic player in NBA: Amen Thompson at No. 1 (58%)
Fastest NBA player with the ball: Amen Thompson received votes

The Rockets did have several other players and coaches receive votes across multiple categories, as can be viewed here. But Thompson was easily the most frequent pick.

As a team, Houston was picked to finish third in the Western Conference behind Oklahoma City and Denver, and the Rockets received at least one vote as the 2026 NBA Finals winner.

The 2025-26 NBA.com GM Survey: www.nba.com/news/2025-26…

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— John Schuhmann (@johnschuhmann.bsky.social) October 9, 2025 at 7:23 AM

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Postgame Show: Kevin Durant makes Rockets debut as Houston moves to 2-0 in preseason

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Kevin Durant and Amen Thompson

Kevin Durant is now really a Houston Rocket.

Durant made his Houston Rockets debut on Wednesday as the Rockets beat the Utah Jazz 140-127. Durant missed his first three shots, then made his final seven en route to 20 points to lead the Rockets. Amen Thompson finished with 19 points, seven boards and six assists, Jabari Smith Jr. scored 18 on an efficient 7-11 shooting and Alperen Sengun chipped in 13 points with an impressive 13 assists (to just one turnover).

On the ClutchFans YouTube account, Ben Dubose and I discussed the impressive debut of Durant, the offensive explosion, the defensive work-in-progress, Sengun running the point and Jabari Smith Jr’s improvement.

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