To that end, they signed veterans Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks to massive long-term contracts and almost reeled in center Brook Lopez before the big man opted to return to the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Rockets wanted more veteran leadership on the team, so they decided to make Dillon Brooks and Fred VanVleet the main focus of their offseason. All the moves paid off as the Rockets went from ...

Fred VanVleet and the Houston Rockets ... said in December that was in part because of the way VanVleet and fellow veteran Dillon Brooks helped shape the Rockets' new "defensive mentality ...