By: Jordan Eugene
Despite what their record maybe this season, the 44-28 Houston Rockets are the most dangerous team in the West. Throughout this season, the Rockets have defeated the likes of the Boston Celtics twice, the Los Angeles Lakers twice, the Los Angeles Clippers, and the Toronto Raptors.
The Rockets defeated the Lakers by 16 points in a bubble game, who played without Lebron James. The other two wins the Rockets had were against the Milwaukee Bucks, who (record wise) are the best team in the league, and the Dallas Mavericks who have the highest offensive ranking in the NBA with 115.7. Beyond the impressive come-from-behind victories that the Rockets had in the game against Dallas (down 131-138 with 45.5 seconds remaining), or in the game against Milwaukee (down 104-112 with 3:07 left in the game), this isn’t the only reason to fear the Rockets.
After acquiring the 2017 MVP Russell Westbrook, while also keeping the 2018 MVP James Harden on the roster, Houston proved they were ready to make drastic changes to the roster in order to win the Larry O’Brien trophy. The last time Russell Westbrook and James Harden played a full season on the same team, they made it to the Finals.
Eight years later, so much has changed in the league. James Harden is now the first option in Houston and has been since they acquired him in 2012. While playing for the Rockets, James Harden has never had a more reliable second option than Russell Westbrook. The only other teammates James Harden had that were All-Stars, were an injury prone Chris Paul who averaged his least amount of points per game, and highest amount of turnover percentage in his entire career while on Houston. Let’s not forget Dwight Howard, a known problem in the locker room, who played a maximum of 71 games in a season while with Houston, and made the All-Star game once in 3 years with Houston.
Those two players just mentioned were clearly past their prime and the game has only sped up over time. The Milwaukee Bucks today have the fastest pace in the NBA with a 105.43. To put it in perspective, the team with the fastest pace when Michael Jordan won his 4th ring was the Philadelphia 76ers with 97.05.
Last year, when the starting point guard for the Rockets was Chris Paul, the Rockets were 27th in pace. In just one season, Russell Westbrook has brought the Rockets to 4th in pace. Russell Westbrook averages more points, rebounds, faster production, less turnover percentage, and a higher player efficiency rating than Chris Paul did last season. Russell Westbrook has proven to be a very good second option for James Harden, who once again is having a fantastic season.
Doubt and criticism from many NBA fans is nothing new to the Houston Rockets. James Harden is one of the most criticized players in the world. You can also add Head Coach Mike D’Antoni as well to the most criticized list. “The Rockets take too many three point attempts.” “Mike D’Antoni’s system will never work.” “James Harden flops too much.” “James Harden travels, and he’s ruining the game of basketball.” All are just a list of complaints fans and media who don’t like the Rockets will say.
The newest issue fans have with the Rockets might be what gets them to the championship, small ball. When the Rockets traded Clint Capela to the Atlanta Hawks, many Rockets fans were disappointed because he was a fan favorite and the alley-oops from James Harden to Capela would be no more, but they also worried there was no traditional 6’10 or taller center to grab rebounds or block.
Since coming to H-Town , Robert Covington has averaged 12 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 2.4 blocks. He has provided great defense that cannot be measured with statistics. Approximately 2 weeks before the season ended due to Covid-19, the Rockets went 10-2 with a lineup that was 6’7” or shorter. The Rockets were also third in offensive rating. The Rockets also currently have the best record in the NBA against over .500 teams. The small ball lineup is perfect for D’Antoni’s system since the Rockets are famous for shooting threes. The point of basketball is to score more points than the other team, and the chance of doing that is higher when four out of the five starters (not Westbrook) on the Rockets have a 35 percent or higher 3-point percentage for their careers.
When pairing 2 of the last 3 MVPs in the backcourt, moving Eric Gordon (career 37 percent 3-point shooter) to small forward, having PJ Tucker, a 3 and D Power Forward, and another 3 and D player in Robert Covington, a bench rotation that consists of Austin Rivers, Danuel House, Jeff Green, and Ben McLemore, the Houston Rockets are the best in the West. In October, do not be surprised to see James Harden receiving the Finals MVP trophy and Russell Westbrook holding up the Larry O’Brien trophy.
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