Outside of the Portland Trail Blazers, no team in the NBA may have had worse luck over the last few years than the Rockets. That continued during the offseason as they had the league reject a deal that would have given them All-Star power forward Pau Gasol and the cap room to sign the top-ranked free agent Nene. Then they saw the Memphis Grizzlies match their offer sheet for restricted free agent center Marc Gasol. Unable to execute any of their plans, the Rockets are bound to fall behind the pack in the incredibly-tough Southwest Division. Counting on head coach Kevin McHale, the most questionable coaching hire of the offseason, to be competitive with a roster that management actively sought to overhaul is not a position any franchise would want to be in.

4th Place, Southwest Division

- Yannis Koutroupis

The offseason was a frustrating time for the Rockets, who struck out on every free agent and trade they pursued. As of this writing they are also without a starting center, or even a back-up unless you count Hasheem Thabeet. The Rockets have lots of nice young pieces, including Jeremy Lin and Marcus Morris, but unless one of the young big men steps up at center it’s going to be a long season for the Rockets. It doesn’t help that they play in the NBA’s toughest division.

5th Place – Southwest Division

- Bill Ingram

It’s not like we didn’t see the Yao Ming retirement coming, but despite that fact the Rockets still haven’t had any luck in tracking down a new franchise center. Pau Gasol would’ve fit the bill just fine had the Chris Paul trade worked out, and Pau’s brother Marc would’ve been equally interesting had he not signed a max four-year deal to stay in Memphis. Nene seems to view Houston as a third option, which means that when this is all said and done, the team’s best new addition might be… Samuel Dalembert? That doesn’t signal a major improvement to me, but Kevin Martin, Luis Scola, and Patrick Patterson are talented enough to at least keep things interesting. Rookies Marcus Morris and Donatas Motiejunas clog up the power forward rotation a little, but they’ll be worth watching, too. Despite all that, with essentially the same roster as last year with only a few minor tweaks, Houston doesn’t seem poised to work their way up the Western Conference ranks any time soon. Not without some sort of major trade or signing, which they still could potentially find a way to do.

4th Place, Southwest Division

- Joel Brigham

The retirement of center Yao Ming, due to chronic injury, ended an era in Houston which never fully seemed to get off the ground. For a team which boasts NBA championships and frequent playoff berths on the resume the Rockets have failed to lure in top tier talent via free agency as of late. Luis Scola and Kevin Martin are two more than capable veterans who produce nightly on a consistent basis, but the team lacks talent at center and the undersized but overachieving Chuck Hayes is no longer on the roster. They’ll compete hard but it’s likely another year on the outside looking in of the postseason for Houston.

5th Place, Southwest Division

- Lang Greene

After David Stern vetoed the three-team trade that would’ve sent Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Houston Rockets found themselves in a very awkward position. Kevin Martin, Luis Scola and Goran Dragic had to start training camp with the organization that had just tried to trade them. The deal was a surprise to Martin, who had been assured several months earlier that the Rockets were going to build around him. Houston also missed out on the chance to acquire Pau Gasol and sign Nene, and now they must try to smooth over the situation and salvage their season. The Dallas Mavericks, Memphis Grizzlies and San Antonio Spurs have improved, which will make it very difficult for the Rockets to make the playoffs out of the Southwest Division. While they’ll finish ahead of the rebuilding New Orleans Hornets in the standings, it’s going to be a tough year for the Rockets.

4th Place, Southwest Division

- Alex Kennedy