During the 2024–25 Western Conference 1st round, the seeds of a feud were planted. The Houston Rockets, led by their young core, were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in a heated 7-game-series that featured constant disputes over physical play and foul calls. Houston felt the whistles favored Golden State; Golden State believed the Rockets lacked the grit to match them. That tension never truly disappeared; it just went quiet.

But not for long. On August 18, 2025, Rockets center Alperen Sengun reignited the conversation on a podcast, saying the Warriors were “a very experienced team” who fouled frequently without being called for it and “cried all series about fouls not being called.” His words reopened wounds that had barely started to heal. Two days later, Warriors forward Draymond Green responded. “That’s a tough thing to say after you lose… You have to win to [say] stuff like that,” he posted, following it with the blunt dismissal: “Hold that L.” Little did fans know, this flare-up was just the start, hinting at the larger shake-ups both teams are planning for the upcoming season.

It might have ended there. Instead, the saga expanded when, on August 21, Rockets forward Tari Eason’s mother, Teroya, stepped in with a message of her own: “Oh Dear, now it’s war.” That single line drew a direct response from Green, escalating the spat beyond the players themselves. Hours later, Draymond fired back with mockery and provocation: “They gone come out playing hard as hell… in a regular season game,” he wrote with laughing emojis. “Somebody tell Mama Eason, she said it was war before they took the L…” For a veteran who’s made a career out of psychological warfare, it was another play in a familiar playbook.

Those wounds Sengun spoke of weren’t abstract; they were rooted in a series that often teetered on the edge of chaos. In Game 4, with Houston fighting to even the series, a foul by Dillon Brooks on Stephen Curry ignited one of the series’ defining moments: a midcourt scuffle that saw Curry taunting Brooks and Draymond Green rushing in to escalate matters. The altercation ended with technical fouls handed out to all three.

That same game featured a moment that would linger even longer in Rockets circles. Chasing a loose ball, Green ended up with his leg pressed onto Tari Eason’s back, and whether it was intentional or not, it drew immediate outrage. The officials reviewed the play and issued a Flagrant-1 foul to Green, but due to a loophole, had to allow him to stay in the game. For Houston, it felt like déjà vu: a star Warrior escaping punishment while their players absorbed the fallout.

Layered on top of the physical clashes was a night of officiating breakdowns: shot clocks malfunctioned, foul calls swung wildly, and momentum tilted with every whistle. Watching from the broadcast desk, Charles Barkley labeled it a “disaster class” and questioned how the league let tensions fester without more decisive action. For Houston, it wasn’t just a loss but a confirmation of the power dynamics they’d long accused Golden State of benefiting from.

How the Feud Sets the Stage for Next Season

Golden State heads into the 2025–26 season navigating tight cap flexibility and a thin offseason headline sheet. With Jimmy Butler already re-signed, the front office is eyeing potential upgrades such as Ben Simmons or Al Horford to inject defensive versatility and shooting into a veteran roster. At the same time, lingering uncertainty over Jonathan Kuminga’s extension looms as a key puzzle piece.

On the other side, Houston’s offseason made headlines with a league-first 7-team trade that landed Kevin Durant signaling aggressive intent. Durant’s arrival adds a personal undertone: his two championship years with Golden State and the complicated departure that followed still cast a long shadow. Now, facing his former teammates, especially Draymond Green, in a postseason grudge match could reignite old narratives—about loyalty, about style, about whose system he truly belonged in.

Additions like Clint Capela, Dorian Finney-Smith and the return of Fred VanVleet bolster Houston’s depth, while fans remain cautiously optimistic despite a Western Conference still loaded with contenders.

Together, these moves mean the war of words isn’t just a social media spectacle, but the opening chapter of a rivalry with layered history. Golden State brings veteran cohesion and Curry’s timeline; Houston brings a Durant-fueled vendetta and a starry young core. Their next collision won’t only be about regular season positioning; it could shape the narrative arc of Durant’s second act and Golden State’s last dance.