When the Warriors upset the second-seeded Rockets in last year’s first round playoff series, Houston probably didn’t expect their revenge game to arrive quite like this: without Kevin Durant, without Fred VanVleet, and with the Warriors riding the exact kind of momentum that made them dangerous in May.
Golden State Warriors vs. Houston Rockets
When: November 26th, 2025 | 7:00 PM PT
TV: ESPN, NBC Sports Bay Area
Radio: 95.7 The Game
The Warriors (10-9) host the Rockets (11-4) tonight in an NBA Cup matchup that feels less about tournament standings and more about settling last season’s score. Both teams sit at 1-2 in Cup play, meaning this game probably won’t send anyone to Las Vegas. But that almost makes it better. No external pressure. Just two teams with something to prove.
Remember Game 7? Buddy Hield dropped 33 points with nine threes in Houston, leading a seventh-seeded Warriors squad to a 103-89 dismantling that ended the Rockets’ championship dreams. That performance forced Houston’s front office to act, eventually landing Durant this summer. Except tonight, Durant sits out due to personal reasons.
Which means we’re getting the raw version of this rivalry. Houston’s young core versus Golden State’s resurgent offense. Amen Thompson, who just torched Phoenix for 28 points while attacking the paint relentlessly, gets another crack at the team that sent his squad home early. The Bay Area native knows what Steph Curry looks like when he gets comfortable, and Thompson gets another crack at the guy he grew up watching on NBC Sports Bay Area.
The injury report reads like a playoff contender’s nightmare. Durant, VanVleet, Steven Adams, and Dorian Finney-Smith are out for Houston. Jonathan Kuminga and Al Horford miss for Golden State. Houston’s trying to prove last year was a fluke. Golden State’s trying to prove it was exactly who they are: a team that wins when everyone counts them out. Tonight’s Chase Center crowd will be loud, the stakes will feel higher than the standings suggest, and two teams will spend 48 minutes writing the next chapter after last May’s narrative.
Game tips at 7:00 PM PT. Bring your volume and your memory of that playoff series, because the Rockets sure haven’t forgotten.
