The Houston Rockets have been clawing back from the bottom of the Western Conference since the terrible start to the season. The team is way different now and James Harden is once again an MVP candidate for it.
The ideal matchup for the team this year has always been to to get home court in the first round, then play the Denver Nuggets in the second round. Houston is an extremely tough matchup for how Denver plays, so that would be a perfect path to a Conference Finals rematch against Golden State.
The Nuggets would much rather play the banged up Portland Trail Blazers in the second round if they could choose and have the Rockets face off against the Warriors then.