This is the first time post-Harden I'll be taking the over, but I'm definitely taking the over this year
Health is going to factor in But if the young bulls can be healthy for majority of season then I can see somewhere around 48-52 wins But of course I Am pipedream ''Hoping'' for same 19/20 game win improvement combined with the 41 wins last cycle, but I will gladly take half and be good at 51 wins
I actually agree with the relative pessimism of the oddsmakers considering how strong the West is going to be. I'm excited for this season but I think we are headed for about ~45 wins and an 8-9 seed. 45 is still an over, of course.
Last year's 49 win team in the west was Phoenix. Dallas had 50 wins. Basically for the Rockets to match that, at least one player must reach the KD/Booker/Kyrie range, if not two players. If Sengun improves a bit and Jalen is perpetual March Jalen Green, that would take the talent level to that range. Other possible improvements include Sengun becoming 90% Jokic, or one of the other youngsters take a leap into stardom at a minimum. All past Rockets teams that reached 50 wins the past 30 years had peak Dream or peak Harden or two legit All-Stars. If you're betting on the Rockets getting close to or reach 50 wins, you really have to believe someone on the roster is going to break out in a big way.
