10 things we learned at Rockets media day, from Amen Thompson's goals to Steven Adams' GTA VI take

Entering last season, with Kevin Durant newly added in the mix, the Houston Rockets expected to take big steps forward. But injuries - one to Fred VanVleet before the season started and another to Steven Adams about halfway through - limited Houston to a campaign that ended the same way the previous one did: 52 wins and a first-round playoff exit.

A long offseason - one that featured a measured approach from the Rockets, who retained their young core and Durant - ended Tuesday with the team's media day, a time of optimism with no losses yet on the ledger.

"We're not here to just make the first round," coach Ime Udoka said. "We want to make some real noise."

"I'm definitely more excited than I was going into last season," general manager Rafael Stone said. "I do think the way Fred's injury hit right on the eve of the season, that was hard on everybody, and so maybe I was a little bit more nervous.

"And this year I feel like I know what to expect more from this group, which lends itself to some excitement for me to see what's going on."

After Stone and Udoka, a host of Rockets players spoke about their offseasons and aspirations for the season ahead. Here are the most interesting things they said:

Amen Thompson is already become an exceptional basketball player - an achievement the Houston Rockets rewarded him for by extending him on a five-year, $208 million deal .

But the 23-year-old, who plays every position on the floor save for center, knows his jump shot will remain a point of focus. Thompson, asked about his offseason work, started with a caveat.

"It's gonna sound kinda corny to y'all but just being the best basketball player I could be," He said. " … I know y'all want me to say shooting and all, I focused on that too, but a little bit of everything: Defense, my handle, playcalling, being a better leader and shooting on top of that too."

Thompson did acknowledge that his defense dropped off last season, leading to him not making the All-Defense teams after being a first-team selection in his second season.

"I didn't deserve it last year, honestly, if I'm being real," he said, saying part of him expected to make the team, leading to the slight drop-off in play. "I want to be a premier defender. I want to make those teams every year, so it definitely was motivation, especially [his twin brother] Ausar making it and me not."

2. Kevin Durant reflects on playoff injuries

During last season's playoff series against the Lakers , there was nearly daily speculation on the availability of Kevin Durant. The future Hall of Famer missed Game 1 of the series with a bruised knee he suffered in practice, then played in Game 2, but injured his ankle in the fourth quarter and missed the rest of the series.

More than four months later, Durant says he wasn't particularly close to returning after that Game 2 injury.

"I couldn't play," he said. "It was hard for me to run up and down the court."

Without Durant on the floor, the Rockets still rebounded from a 3-0 series deficit and pushed it to six games before bowing out. In some of those losses, the flaws of the team's younger players were exposed, but Durant says they'll all be better from it.

"I don't think basketball can put you in uncomfortable positions," Durant said. "You're either going to learn from it or not. I think the positions they were put in in the playoffs is exactly what they needed to go through."

3. Fred VanVleet is a full go - but finding his form is still a process

One of Houston's key returning pieces, point guard Fred VanVleet, made it clear Tuesday - exactly a year since he suffered the ACL tear that cost him all of last season- that he expected some level of adjustment as he returned from the injury

His knee does feel different after the injury and there is no substitute for live game repetitions, VanVleet said. But the guard, one of the league's better on-court organizers and minimizers of turnovers, has played 5-on-5 games and is a full go entering training camp.

"I've been progressing nicely. These things don't always go how you want them to go, how you plan them to go … I feel really good," VanVleet said. "It's going to be a process still so I'm sure what you guys see won't be the finished product. … But yeah, considering 12 months ago I wasn't able to walk at this point in the year, I'd say I'm doing pretty good right now."

Alperen Şengün has become a certified star in the NBA, as evidenced by being selected to play in back-to-back All-Star Games, and the 24-year-old, who averaged 20.4 points and 8.9 rebounds per game last season, expects that trend to continue.

"I was an All-Star two times, but that's not enough," he said. "I want to be there every year. I don't even want to think about, 'Am I going to make it or not? ' I just need to play like I'm ready for this, like I know I'm going to go there and that should be everyone's goal."

Şengün spoke a lot about team goals - namely advancing deeper in the playoffs - but he has an extremely lofty goal for himself.

"Every year, expectations get bigger and bigger and that helps you to become a better player," he said "I want to be the best player in this league one day."

Reed Sheppard shocked some folks when he made an appearance earlier this month with bushy long hair flowing out of the back of his baseball cap . There was no hat at media day, so the guard entering his third season in the league, gave everyone the full look, which he says will change before the preseason starts with a trip to China in October.

"I just haven't gotten a haircut yet," Sheppard said. "I don't really know what I'm waiting on. My goal was to go before media day, but as you can tell, that did not happen. Before we go to China, I will have a haircut of some sort, whether it's still long, short, whatever, we'll see, but I'll have a haircut before we leave."

If he does keep his hair long, he says he absolutely will not wear a headband, but was happy to hear the look was creating buzz on social media.

"I kept it long this summer because most of the time I just threw on a hat, but now obviously you can't wear a hat when you play basketball. I wish I could," he said. "We'll see what happens, but I'm glad some of the people out there liked it."

6. Steven Adams still working his way back

A lot has been made of Fred VanVleet's return from his ACL injury, but Steven Adams' presence will be just as key. As one of the strongest players in the league and most efficient rebounders, Adams' presence was sorely missed when he went out with an ankle injury last January after playing just 32 games.

Adams is about eight months removed from ankle surgery and is back on the court, but getting back to where he was is still a work in progress.

"I've still got to take my time with it," Adams said. "It's one thing to just get back from the injury, but getting back to an NBA level is a different ask."

Adams went into great detail comparing his ankle injury to the knee injury that kept him out the entire 2024-25 season, saying the knee injury took much longer to return from, but the ankle injury is more mental because it's the landing point for every step and the rest of the leg absorbs the constant impact.

"There's a lot of bones down there, mate, it's a bit complicated," he said.

Adams also offered a prediction: Performance across sports leagues, not just for players but also coaches and scouts, will dip in November before rebounding (hopefully) in December.

His reasoning: "GTA is dropping," Adams said, referring to the long-awaited release of the video game Grand Theft Auto VI.

Tari Eason focused his offseason on getting in shape, ballhandling, the base of his shot and adding more arc to his jumpers.

"This offseason was probably the most diligent I've ever been, the most focused I've ever been with my attention to detail," he said.

"New money," he said, referring to the five-year, $80 million extension he signed with the Rockets after testing restricted free agency in the summer. Part of that is him trying to validate the contract but part of it, Eason said, is going through the offseason with a clear mind and healthy body.

"It's amazing," Eason said about the extension. "I'm happy to be here. It's a blessing to be able to spend my time with the Rockets here. I got drafted here, so I'm very happy about it."

At just 23 years old, Jabari Smith Jr ., will be the second-youngest player in the Rockets' regular rotation, but as he enters Year 5 in the league, he's ready to take on more of a leadership role.

Even at his age, Smith, who was the third overall pick in the 2022 draft, is the third-longest tenured Rockets player on the roster behind only Alperen Şengün and Jae'Sean Tate.

"I definitely want to be more vocal," Smith said. "I definitely want to be somebody where my voice is heard. I don't want to call myself old, but I've seen a little bit now being in the playoffs two years and being in Ime's system for a little bit now. I feel like I know what he wants and what the team wants and I think it's on me to use my voice a little bit more and be a little more vocal and take on that leadership role more. I think it will help everybody, so I'm ready to take on that challenge."

10. Marcus Smart happy to be on Durant's team

Marcus Smart is happy he doesn't have to guard Kevin Durant anymore.

"I get to be on the other side of him taking the shots and not taking the shots over me," Smart said. "It's just tough, his ability to make shots - it doesn't matter who's there and it also doesn't help that he's close to 7-foot and I'm close to 6-foot, right?"

Now, Smart said, his job is just to pass Durant the ball and watch him do what he does best: Shoot.