The Southwest Division — consisting of the Memphis Grizzlies, Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks, and New Orleans Pelicans — made headlines this offseason with many notable trades, free agent signings, and talented draft day selections. NBA teams play each divisional opponent four times during the regular season, so Memphis must perform well against these teams.
Part one of The Stacked Southwest series is about the Houston Rockets — breaking down the team, last year’s matchups, and the importance of every game against Houston in the 2025-26 season.
In recent years, the Rockets have been one of the Grizzlies’ primary rivals within the Southwest Division. Dillon Brooks and Steven Adams went from Memphis to Houston via trades in 2023 and 2024, and since then, the Rockets have continued building their roster to become true title contenders. Right now, they have a good mix of young talent and veteran presence on the team, so they are positioning themselves to compete at a high level this season.
Houston has arguably been one of the most successful teams this offseason in terms of trades and free agent signings. The Kevin Durant trade stole the spotlight, but the Rockets added even more talent with Clint Capela and Dorian Finney-Smith, all while keeping the majority of last year’s team intact.
Alperen Şengün, Amen Thompson, Steven Adams, Fred VanVleet, Tari Eason, and Jabari Smith Jr. are the returning members of the team. That said, the 2024-25 Rockets squad was already very well-rounded, so the fact that they’ve now added several more talented pieces is a bit scary for the rest of the division.
The Grizzlies went 1-3 against the Rockets
In the 2024-25 season, the Grizzlies and Rockets faced off four times. Many of these games were close, but Memphis only won one of them. The first meeting between the teams came early in the season, on October 25, 2024. This was definitely not Memphis’ best showing, as they ended up losing the game by 20 points. While this isn’t an excuse for the loss, it was only the second game of the regular season, so the Grizzlies were likely still finding their rhythm.
The second, third, and fourth matchups were much more competitive. Unfortunately for the Grizzlies, though, these were three very winnable games, and Memphis only won one of them. In fourth quarter scenarios where the two teams were within striking distance of one another, Memphis was unable to close the game out against Houston on two occasions.
These games were close and exciting to watch, but many fans were left wondering why the Grizzlies struggled to beat this Rockets team when they were pretty evenly matched.
Houston games should be a priority next season
With recent roster changes on both sides, the key question for the upcoming season is how the Grizzlies will measure up against the Rockets. One thing is certain, though — Tuomas Iisalo should have all four of these games circled on his calendar. The two teams will meet four times again (at least in the regular season), and Memphis needs to be ready.
This doesn’t mean they need to win every game against the Rockets, but there should be a noticeable improvement from last season’s 1-3 showing. Many anticipate that the Rockets will be a very tough competitor next year, which means the Grizzlies must approach each matchup with a playoff-level mindset.