Story by
NBA names Houston’s Ime Udoka as Western Conference Coach of the Month for January
- Story by
- NBA names Houston’s Ime Udoka as Western Conference Coach of the Month for January
For a second time in three cycles, Houston Rockets head coach was named by the NBA as Western Conference Coach of the Month.
This time, the award was for games played in January. Earlier in the 2024-25 season, Udoka won the same award for games played in November and the limited portion of October.
Advertisement
Dating back to Udoka's 2021-22 season with the Boston Celtics , which resulted in an NBA Finals appearance and an East title, Udoka has now won the award in five of his 13 opportunities as a head coach.
Led by Udoka, the Rockets went 11-4 in January, posting the best winning percentage (.733) in the West and the second-best in the NBA. Nine of Houston's 15 games were on the road with the Rockets going 7-2, including wins at Boston, Cleveland , and Denver . The Rockets averaged a league-high 10.7 steals in January and shot 38.2% from 3-point range after shooting 32.7% in the first 32 games of the season.
Houston currently holds the NBA's fifth-best record and went a combined 6-1 in January against the other teams ranked in the top seven of the league standings. The Rockets were 7-2 in games decided by five or fewer points and have a league-best 12 wins by that margin this season.
The Rockets entered February at 32-15, marking their best start since going 35-13 in 2017-18. In that season, Houston finished with a franchise-best 65 wins. After not having more than 14 road wins in any of their previous four seasons, the Rockets have won 11 of their past 13 road games and are 17-7 away from Toyota Center this season.
Advertisement
Under Udoka's guidance, Houston is allowing the fifth-fewest points in the NBA this season (108.5 points per game) while ranking sixth in field-goal defense (45.4%). The Rockets lead the NBA in rebounding differential (+5.0) and second-chance scoring (18.0) on a per-game basis. Among players, seven different Rockets are averaging at least 11.0 points this season after six averaged at least 12 points per game in 2023-24, Udoka's first as head coach in Houston.
More: Tilman Fertitta: Under Ime Udoka, Rockets progressing 'even quicker than we thought'
This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: NBA names Houston's Ime Udoka as West Coach of the Month for January
