Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka reacts during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Golden State Warriors, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in San Francisco.
Godofredo A. Vásquez/Associated Press
The Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors have more than enough fiery figures on the hardwood to anticipate a slate of flagrant and technical fouls in what could be a seven-game series beginning Sunday. Houston has one additional combatant on its bench.
Rockets head coach Ime Udoka finished the regular season third among NBA coaches with nine technicals, and he was ejected twice in December after disputes with officials. Udoka admitted Thursday that his high technical count isn’t exactly a strategy, noting he’s often “just as mad as my guys on the floor.” However, there is one element of Udoka’s intense, profane personality that is strategically deployed. Udoka doesn’t reserve his ire only for officials and his own team; instead, he’s willing to wage war with any opposing player, from LeBron James to Steph Curry, most recently.
Article continues below this ad
Udoka and Curry engaged in a verbal back-and-forth during the star guard’s dismal 1-for-10 shooting performance, a game in which he scored just three points and committed four turnovers. For Udoka, Curry’s response was everything he aspired to achieve.
“When people start complaining about foul calls or crying about physicality, you’ve done your job,” Udoka told The Athletic in April. “That’s the first step in winning the battle. So I told my team, when this team starts crying about it, up the intensity, up the aggressiveness, and make the refs adjust to you.”
For the Rockets players, the motivation offers a unique sense of solidarity.
“He’s like one of us,” Rockets center Alperen Şengün said Thursday when recalling Udoka’s taunt of Curry in Houston’s win at Golden State earlier this month. “We always say that. Whatever we do, outside of the court, inside of the court, he’s one of us.”
Article continues below this ad
Udoka’s emotion can often spark his young team. It also acts as a layer of protection, which could be key against famed Warriors’ antagonist Draymond Green.
Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka yells at referee Curtis Blair during the second half of an NBA basketball game at Toyota Center on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, in Houston.
Karen Warren/Staff photographer
“He’s never backing up,” Şengün said. “He’s not like other coaches who will just watch the players [talk].”
Udoka’s team is new to the playoffs in the post-James Harden era. Houston’s head coach is no stranger to the spring spotlight. Udoka guided the Boston Celtics to the 2022 NBA Finals before losing to Curry and the Warriors in a six-game exit, where Curry dismantled a typically strong Boston defense. Will history repeat itself with Udoka now in Houston? Perhaps different personnel will yield a different result. Amen Thompson is a Defensive Player of the Year candidate and will likely be the initial assignment on Curry in Game 1, beginning Sunday night. However, Udoka has witnessed NBA horror stories before. One man can’t stop Curry, especially given the Warriors’ dizzying array of screens.
Article continues below this ad
Pulling off a Round 1 upset requires more than sheer force. Houston will rely on Udoka’s defensive tactics as well as his tone-setting attitude against Golden State.
“He knows the ins and outs of our defense, their offense,” Houston wing Dillon Brooks said. “He studies and prepares. … So, yeah, we’ll be ready.”
Golden State ended the Rockets’ seasons four times during the James Harden era, with playoff eliminations occurring in 2015, 2016, 2018, and 2019. Will a new era of Houston hoops flip the script?
Article continues below this ad
