‘Real PG’: Rockets win seventh straight as Amen Thompson dominates Suns

With 21 points, 11 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 steals, Amen Thompson was a dynamic two-way force in Houston’s 119-105 win (box score) over the Phoenix Suns.

“He controlled the game,” Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. said of Thompson.

Smith finished with 20 points and 6 rebounds while making 5-of-13 shots from 3-point range (38.5%), many off assists from his third-year teammate.

“He was on some real PG (point guard) s— tonight,” Smith elaborated. “He was demanding the ball, getting us in sets, and the ball pressure wasn’t rattling him. He calmed us down a bit, and obviously no one can stay in front of him. He took us home in those last 10 minutes. That was big.”

Despite falling behind by 21 points in the game’s opening minutes, the Rockets still largely cruised to victory in a nationally televised showcase on NBC.

“It was huge growth by us tonight,” Smith said postgame. “That was a real big step in the right direction.”

“Nobody panicked when it (a 26-5 run by Phoenix to start the game) was happening. We stayed together. We stayed poised. We knew our run was going to come.”

Beyond assists and ball-handling, Thompson made 10-of-16 shots (62.5%) from the field, and he also played strong defense versus a pair of former teammates in Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks — who combined to shoot just 8-of-26 overall (30.8%) and 1-of-11 on 3-pointers (9.1%).

Green and Brooks were traded to Phoenix last offseason in the blockbuster trade that brought Kevin Durant 24 points, 5-of-9 on 3-pointers) to Houston.

“We persevered,” Thompson said postgame to Space City Home Network’s Vanessa Richardson. “Three of the four quarters, we turned it up, and we locked in. That was a great win.”

Beyond the aforementioned three players, other individual statistics of note included:

• Alperen Sengun: 12 points, 14 rebounds, 6 assists, 6 turnovers; 5-of-15 shooting (33.3%)
• Reed Sheppard: 12 points, 5 rebounds in 21 minutes; 5-of-9 shooting (55.6%), 2-of-6 on 3-pointers (33.3%)
• Tari Eason: 12 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, +29 in 31 minutes; 5-of-7 shooting (71.4%)
• Aaron Holiday: 12 points, +27 in 21 minutes; 4-of-6 shooting (66.7%), 2-of-4 on 3-pointers (50.0%)
• Devin Booker (Suns): 31 points, 8 assists; 7-of-16 shooting (43.8%), 2-of-6 on 3-pointers (33.3%), 15-of-16 on free throws (93.8%)

The Rockets (50-29) are now on a season-best winning streak of seven games, and Tuesday’s win pulled them into a tie with the Lakers for fourth place in the Western Conference standings. Los Angeles owns the tiebreaker, but with three games left in the 2025-26 regular season, the Lakers also have several injury considerations to navigate.

The No. 4 spot would mean having home-court advantage in the first round of the 2026 NBA playoffs, and the Rockets are 28-10 at home this season.

As for Tuesday’s opponent, the Suns (43-36) are now locked into the West play-in tournament and will need to win a game there to advance to the playoffs.

For the Rockets, Tuesday’s game concluded the road portion of the 2025-26 regular season. The final three games are all at home, starting with Thursday’s matchup versus Philadelphia (43-36).

That 76ers-Rockets tipoff is at 7:00 p.m. Central from Toyota Center, and the game will be televised and streamed regionally on Space City Home Network and nationally via NBA League Pass.

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This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: ‘Real PG’: Rockets win seventh straight as Amen Thompson dominates Suns