Overview

• Sports Illustrated’s 2025–26 NBA preview hit newsstands Thursday with Durant on the cover in a Rockets uniform, signaling a national spotlight on Houston.
• Durant, 37, told SI he wants Houston to be his final team, saying he intends to play the last years of his career with the Rockets.
• He is in the final year of his contract at $54.7 million this season and has said he expects to seek an extension to remain in Houston.
• Houston acquired Durant in the offseason by sending Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and the No. 10 draft pick to the Suns.
• Coach Ime Udoka has urged the Rockets’ young core not to defer, telling players such as Alperen Sengun, Jabari Smith Jr., Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard, “Don’t take a backseat to anybody.”