HOUSTON -- With the start of media day across much of the NBA on Monday, there is plenty of title talk around Golden State, San Antonio and Cleveland.
Expectations have been raised for the Los Angeles Clippers and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The buzz around the league, however, doesn't seem to involve the Houston Rockets.
"I haven't heard too much buzz about us," newly acquired point guard Ty Lawson said Monday. "They talk about Golden State, talk about the Clippers and San Antonio, but little mention about us. That's what we're working hard for. That's what we're in the gym for so we can put everybody on notice when the season comes around."
The Rockets won 56 games last season and reached the Western Conference finals before losing to the Warriors in five games. The first two games of the conference finals in Oakland could have been won by Houston.
It was an amazing season for Houston, and this offseason, general manager Daryl Morey added one potentially big piece. Houston lost only backup forward Josh Smith but added Lawson, in a trade with Denver for four backups, to help Harden with his playmaking abilities in the backcourt.
"[Lawson] brings us playmaking, brings us quickness, brings us that speed that we hadn't had yet," James Harden said. "All those things that come together, and if we can stay healthy, I'm pretty confident we have a legitimate shot to win it all."
Jason Terry, who enters his 17th NBA season, has won an NBA title and played in more postseason games than anyone on the Rockets' roster. He understands the grind better than most. He likes what he sees from this Rockets team, but is cautious with expectations.
"In Golden State, they're champs," Terry said. "It's going to be up to one of these other teams to dethrone them, and I think for us it speaks directly to, 'Hey, you knocked us off last year. You stopped us from obtaining our dream.' When you look at them, you have to understand there are other teams in the Western Conference that have gotten better on paper and they still have to put it together also. You look at our division alone, we have four playoff teams. It's going to be a dogfight."
From the moment their season ended in the West finals, the Rockets thought about the season opener.
Trevor Ariza said it took a long time to get over the playoff hurt. Patrick Beverley, who watched the playoffs because he was recovering from wrist surgery, couldn't wait to get back into the gym. Coach Kevin McHale was already thinking about managing Dwight Howard's minutes to keep the center on the floor for more than the 41 games that he played.
Then there's Harden.
He finished second in the MVP race to Stephen Curry. Second in scoring, but first in minutes played. He wanted help, and Morey got it with the trade for Lawson.
Harden doesn't mind sharing the ball, and McHale wants him to catch and shoot more often this season. Lawson said he can also play off the ball and allow Harden to become the main ball handler, and McHale envisions Lawson and Beverley in the backcourt together at times.
Beverley said the duo will give opposing defenses "hell."
During the late stages of the summer, Harden gathered his teammates in Los Angeles for a meeting of the minds to work out, getting to know each other again and focusing on the task of winning a title.
"It's a humbling and it's a confident feeling," Harden said. "It's not handed to you."
Some NBA experts didn't have the Rockets in the conference finals last season. Houston rallied from a 3-1 deficit to beat the Clippers in the semifinal round and McHale made smart moves to push his team to a late playoff run.
Harden emerged as a dependable postseason player, Howard overcame his health issues to produce solid numbers and the bench, led by Corey Brewer, Clint Capela and Terry, gave McHale the depth the Rockets needed.
A healthy Houston team is dangerous, especially if Howard stays on the court and Donatas Motiejunas (back surgery) improves as a frontcourt presence.
It's this group that feels it can compete for a title, if not win it.
"I'm just looking forward to the challenge of playing in a tough Western Conference [and] seeing what we're made of," Howard said. "Last year, we had an unbelievable season, despite all the injuries that we had and how we finished in the playoffs. I think we did an excellent job, and I really believe this season will be special for us."