The Houston Rockets’ 124:125 loss to the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA season opener should actually strengthen their standing as legitimate contenders. They started with an almost absurd lineup: Fןve players who are all forwards or centers - and didn’t collapse. They dominated the boards 52:38, exactly as envisioned by coach Ime Udoka. They were one unnecessary Kevin Durant foul away from a statement win. They did it all without Fred VanVleet, out for the season, and without Dorian Finney-Smith, who could have helped given Tari Eason’s struggles (1-for-6 from the field, four turnovers).

But a deeper look at the box score - and at the game itself - shows that Houston’s fundamental issues are still here, big time.

First, Oklahoma City played without Jalen Williams, and it’s safe to assume that with him, their 13-for-52 from three would have improved. Houston, meanwhile, wasn’t much better at 11-for-39 - thanks mainly to five threes from Alperen Şengün. How sustainable is that? His previous career high was three, set back in December 2023. The Rockets still lack shooting because…they lack reliable shooters. Ajay Mitchell, who hit 3-of-6 from deep in 15 minutes for the Thunder, will probably slide back to OKC’s bench once Williams returns. Had Mitchell played for Houston, it’s safe to say he would be a fixture of the rotation.

The real issue, however, is at the point guard position. As every coach knows, dribbling past half-court doesn’t make you a point guard. The Rockets’ best passer and primary decision-maker is Şengün, who led the team with seven assists. Amen Thompson is a phenomenal driver, but his playmaking rarely extends beyond bringing the ball up and starting the offense - not always successfully. Here, he simply lost the ball on a routine entry pass to trigger a Horns Set, the kind of basic execution expected from any NBA point guard.

Because of those lapses, Houston turned the ball over 22 times - double Oklahoma City’s total - and almost completely neutralized their rebounding advantage and extra-possession edge.

Reed Sheppard is supposed to be the team’s (sort of) natural point guard ahead of Aaron Holiday, but he’s really more of a combo guard, and it showed. On one possession, he ran a shake pick-and-roll - the weak-side player (Amen Thompson) was supposed to lift from the corner to the wing as the big man rolled. Thompson didn’t move, and Sheppard’s automatic pass went out of bounds.

Another sequence exposed another limitation: Sheppard receives the inbounds pass, fails to hit Durant, who’s pointing toward Şengün, the following link in a potential handoff play - and instead chooses the easiest, most predictable pass, right where the Thunder defense wanted it, to Eason, who forces a drive and misses.

The most glaring example came in the clutch. Running a pick-and-pop twice (with a staggered screen the second time around), Sheppard’s goal was to free Durant for an isolation touch at the top of the key - a set Durant has run hundreds of times in his career. Sheppard hesitated, then threw a predictable pass right into the arms of one of the league’s best defenders, Luguentz Dort.

Sheppard is not a point guard. The question is how many losses Houston is willing to absorb while trying to make him one - or whether they’ll turn to the next option, Aaron Holiday. At the moment, there isn’t another option.

And if all that weren’t enough, Sheppard is also a glaring defensive liability on what’s otherwise a strong defensive unit. Here’s Aaron Wiggins - a player whose three-point attempts nearly match his two-point shots, and who dunked only 15 times last season, mostly in transition - going straight through Sheppard in a simple pick-and-roll for an uncontested dunk.

The Rockets have a problem with their No. 3 overall pick from last year. He might be ready to play, but not in this role and not for a contender.