The Houston Rockets' season ended much like it began—full of promise, yet ultimately falling short. Kevin Durant's highly anticipated debut campaign with the Rockets concluded not with a bang, but with a quiet resignation as he watched from the bench in street clothes, sidelined by a sprained left ankle.

On Friday night at Toyota Center, with their season hanging in the balance, the Rockets needed a miracle to force a Game 7 against the Los Angeles Lakers. Instead, they watched their playoff hopes slip away in a 98-78 defeat. For the second consecutive year, Houston found themselves packing up lockers after a first-round exit—a bitter pill for a franchise that traded big last summer to bring Durant to Space City.

The irony wasn't lost on anyone in the locker room. After the game, teammates exchanged jerseys and shared quiet embraces, souvenirs from a season that promised so much more. Durant, who suited up for just one playoff game against the Lakers before the ankle injury struck, could only reflect on what might have been.

Coach Ime Udoka summed it up bluntly: both first-round exits felt like the team "got behind the eight ball" from the start. For a roster built around a future Hall of Famer, the margin for error in the playoffs is razor-thin—and Houston keeps coming up just short.

As the Rockets head into an offseason of tough questions, one thing is clear: next season, the expectations won't be any lower. And Durant, healthy and hungry, will be looking to write a very different ending.