The Houston Rockets were the worst team in the Western Conference three seasons ago. Houston is now a Western Conference playoff team after Wednesday night.
Houston advanced to 45-25 on the season with Wednesday's road win at the Orlando Magic, and a loss by the Dallas Mavericks guaranteed Houston at least the No. 10 seed and final postseason spot in the West. Securing at least a play-in berth (given to the No. 7 through No. 10 seed in a given conference) was a de-facto guarantee for the Rockets as early as February. The more relevant question as of late March: How high can Houston climb in the Western Conference standings in the final month of the regular season?