The Rockets lost and fell to fifth place! Durant and Shen Jing sleepwalked into two sinners. Sheppard’s career night was ruined.

On November 22, the Rockets lost a key game to the Nuggets at home in the NBA Cup 109-112. The Rockets lost a key game and their 5-game winning streak was ended. With 10 wins and 4 losses, they fell directly from third place in the Western Conference to fifth place in the Western Conference. The Lakers moved up to third place in the Western Conference, while the Spurs moved up to fourth place in the Western Conference. Durant and Shen Jing made a combined 11 of 28 shots and became the two sinners of the team's narrow defeat. Shepard's career night was ruined.

In a key position battle in the Western Conference, the Rockets performed poorly on both offense and defense in the first quarter, trailing by 13 points 12-25 in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Rockets reversed the situation 37-21 in a single quarter. Shepard scored 18 points on 8 of 10 in a single quarter; in the second half The Rockets and Nuggets played very close. Durant was invisible at the critical moment, Shen Jing made a fatal mistake and suffered a big block. Amen and Xiaojia scored consecutive three-pointers, but Jokic made two free throws with 2.7 seconds left in the game. Shen Jing missed the buzzer-tying three-pointer. In the end, the Rockets lost by 3 points.

The Rockets lost by 3 points, and their 5-game winning streak was ended. Durant's performance was very sluggish. He played 35 minutes, 5 of 14 shots, 1 of 5 three-pointers, only 13 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. In the final quarter, Durant made 0 of 3 shots and failed to score. He was completely invisible at the critical moment. He was one of the culprits of the Rockets' defeat.

Shen Jing was beaten by his idol Jokic again. He played 36 minutes and scored 14 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 1 steal on 5 of 14 shots. He made 5 turnovers and 5 fouls, with a game-low plus-minus of -16. He missed a three-point tie at the last moment. Jokic, on the other hand, scored 34 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists in the game. It has to be said that the gap between Shen Jing and Jokic is still huge.

Sheppard's career night was disrupted. He came on the bench for 37 minutes, made 9 of 13 shots, 5 of 8 three-pointers, 4 of 6 free throws, and scored a career-high 27 points. He has 4 assists and 2 steals, with a plus-minus value of +13; in the last 5 games, Sheppard averaged 17.8 points, 3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2 steals per game, shooting 56.9% from the field and 50% from the three-point range.

The Rockets' 5-game winning streak was ended. With 10 wins and 4 losses, they fell directly from third place in the Western Conference to fifth place. They ranked fourth in the group with a cup record of 1 win and 2 losses, and a net margin of 10 points. The Warriors had 1 win and 2 losses and a net margin of -28 points. They were at the bottom of the group.