Ime Udoka was visibly unhappy after the Rockets threw away a 14-point fourth-quarter lead to lose 124-125 in overtime against the Kings tonight.
He spoke to the media during the postgame press conference and pointed towards the Rockets’ lack of focus on the thin margins on defense that led to allowing the Kings some open looks in the clutch moments of the game.
However, he also threw a subtle jab at the Kings with a response that was not humble, to say the least.
“Yeah, we put a small lineup in to guard one-on-one, knowing DeRozan’s going to get isolation and it’s a two-point game. We wanted to stay locked in on guys, and he drove baseline under the basket, and I think it was Tari left shorter in the corner. We’re supposed to stay locked up one-on-one,” said Udoka initially on what went wrong in the final possession that allowed
The Rockets were up by 14 points midway through the fourth quarter. But the Kings rallied back and forced overtime to eventually steal the win.
“It wasn’t just the fourth quarter; it was the entire game. Our approach wasn’t right. You know, we had a game yesterday that we felt much more felt like motivated for or whatever,” Udoka further added.
“And just to let them hang around the way that they did was a lot due to us. Got 19 offensive rebounds, multiple unforced turnovers, and missed assignments.”
As the best rebounding team in the NBA, it was surprising to see the Rockets get out-rebounded 47-55 in this game. This was the Rockets’ second night off a back-to-back after defeating the Nuggets in Denver last night.
“And so that’s what happens in the game, we didn’t really deserve to win that, being down eight or 10, whatever, when it should have been a 15-to-20 point game. It’s on us, and I’ve got to do a better job of getting them motivated in games against lesser opponents,” said Udoka with a subtle shot at the bottom-placed Kings.
Udoka subtly implied that he wants his team to take opponents like the Kings as seriously as they did the Nuggets. No one can deny what the Rockets’ head coach said, as the Kings are currently 7-22 and tied for last place in the West after this win.
However, instead of giving the worst team in the Western Conference some grace for beating them, Udoka chose to remind them of their place in the conference. Certainly not a humble choice of words from Udoka, who called the Kings a “lesser opponent.”
This is the second time this month that the Kings and the Rockets faced each other. While the Rockets won the first game at home, this game adds to the overtime woes that they are facing this season.
The Rockets fell to 17-9 for the season following this loss. They are currently 1-4 in the five games this season that have gone into overtime, and have lost eight of their nine games in clutch situations down the stretch. It will be interesting to see how the Rockets bounce back from here.
