Kevin Durant finished with 18 points and a season-high 12 assists as the Houston Rockets beat the Utah Jazz 125-105, moving into third place in the Western Conference. Six Rockets scored in double figures despite the team committing 27 turnovers.
Jabari Smith Jr. led Houston’s scoring with 31 points on six three-pointers. Amen Thompson added 20 points on 8-of-9 shooting, Alperen Sengun recorded 16 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists, and Reed Sheppard contributed 15 points off the bench with five threes. Tari Eason finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Durant’s 12 assists reflect a deliberate shift into distributor role against Jazz
Durant controlled the game through passing rather than scoring volume, initiating possessions from the high post and perimeter before finding shooters created by defensive rotations. His 12 assists came on a night where Houston generated 125 points across six double-figure scorers, and his shot attempts stayed modest relative to the production he created for teammates.
Durant addressed the balance between what worked and what did not. “I like that we made shots. Obviously, that’s the name of the game is making shots, but we have to be better than I think we 20 plus turnovers. Like that’s been our Achilles heel the whole season,” he said.
He also spoke about the flexibility his experience provides. “I should be able to do that. Being in the league for so long and playing for so many systems and good players and all types of players I didn’t play with,” Durant said. That adaptability was visible throughout the game as he repeatedly advanced the ball and generated catch-and-shoot looks rather than holding possessions for isolation scoring.
Jabari Smith Jr. scores 31 with six threes as five Rockets starters reach double figures
Smith’s six three-pointers stretched Utah’s defense and opened driving lanes for Thompson and Sengun. When the Jazz rotated to contest Smith on the perimeter, Houston attacked the gaps — Thompson’s 8-of-9 shooting was a direct result of those defensive breakdowns.
Sengun’s nine assists alongside his 16 points gave Houston a second playmaker operating from the post, allowing Durant to play off the ball in stretches rather than handling every possession. Sheppard’s five threes off the bench provided additional scoring depth that prevented Utah from narrowing its defensive focus to the starting five.
27 turnovers produce 34 Jazz points and remain Houston’s most persistent issue
Houston’s 27 turnovers led to 34 Utah points and kept stretches of the game closer than the final margin suggested. Durant identified the problem as a season-long pattern rather than an isolated result, calling turnovers the team’s “Achilles heel.”
The Rockets scored 125 points despite giving the ball away 27 times, which speaks to the shooting efficiency and depth that carried the offense. Against stronger opponents, that turnover rate would likely eliminate the cushion that balanced scoring provided on Monday. The gap between Houston’s offensive ceiling and its turnover floor remains the most significant variable in the team’s postseason outlook.
Rockets move into Western Conference third seed with 20-point win
The victory pushed Houston into third place in the Western Conference, where seeding will determine first-round matchups in a tightly grouped playoff field. The Rockets have demonstrated the ability to win comfortably when their shooting connects and multiple players contribute offensively, but the turnover numbers present a clear vulnerability that playoff opponents will target.
If Houston can reduce its giveaways from the mid-20s into the mid-teens while maintaining the offensive balance that produced six double-figure scorers against Utah, the gap between the Rockets and the teams above them in the standings narrows further.