The Rockets have been getting a taste of playoff basketball in recent close wins.
Roster features multiple players who thrive on big-time buckets
The Rockets would rather had not needed a lastsecond game-winner to beat the Suns or hold off the Trail Blazers.
But if playoff games come down to that one make-or-miss moment, as eventually they do if a postseason run lasts as long as the Rockets hope theirs will, it might be just as well to get some practice in on buzzer-beaters.
Playoff fortunes can swing dramatically based on one made or missed basket, with considerably more on the line than was at stake when Gerald Green launched his corner 3 to lift the Rockets past the Suns or Chris Paul put in his runner to avoid overtime against the Blazers.
But the Rockets might not have needed those moments to prove to themselves they can respond under make-or-break pressure.
Paul’s last-second gamewinner Thursday was just the Rockets’ third this season to come that late. But as much as the Rockets have avoided close finishes, they have excelled in the tight games they have played.
Since James Harden’s return from a hamstring injury in mid-January, the Rockets have had 20 games in which they led or trailed by five points or fewer in the final five minutes. They have won 18 of those games. They have made a league-best 43.2 percent of their 3-pointers in those situations in that stretch, led by Paul’s 66.7 percent shooting.
“We got a lot of closers,” coach Mike D’Antoni said. “Everybody out there. Eric (Gordon) made a big shot. Gerald made a big shot. Chris does. James does. We have so many. We have a lot of them. Trevor (Ariza) will do it. He’s made big shots through the years. Somebody will step up and try to make the best shot and you go to the next game.”
Best in final 5 minutes
The Rockets this season have the best net rating in the NBA in those “clutch situations,” outscoring opponents by 22.2 points per 100 possessions. Their offensive rating in those close games in the final five minutes is 126.6. That is so phenomenal that it far outpaces their league-best offensive rating overall this season of 112.7 points per 100 possessions.
Before the recent shots put in just before the buzzer, in each game of a road trip last month, Harden sank late 3-pointers to clinch close wins in New Orleans, Minnesota and Portland, with Ariza and P.J. Tucker also sinking 3s in the closing minutes of those games.
The Rockets would be better served to win without relying on late shotmaking, as the fourthquarter fade in Saturday’s loss demonstrated as the Thunder pulled away. But given the caliber of competition they can expect in the postseason, most games will likely come down to those closing minutes, if not seconds.
“(Ariza) makes big shots, real big shots,” D’Antoni said. “I think P.J. is one of those shooters, the more pressure on the shot, the better he shoots. The more important the game, the better he shoots. He was a 37 (percent) career kind of shooter, so he can do that. It doesn’t surprise me.”
Given the Rockets’ offensive style, in which Harden initiates the offense nearly as much as he ends possessions, and with Paul bringing a similar mindset, having traditional role players able to make the shots the stars set up is vital. But those moments are unpredictable. Ariza’s late 3s on the road trip came off offensive rebounds by Clint Capela and Tucker. Green’s 3 to beat the Suns was on an inbounds pass from Ariza.
For the Rockets’ playmakers, there could be a freedom to believing the shots they set up will go in.
“It’s a good feeling,” Paul said. “It’s a great feeling to know that we all have the confidence in one another. Every night we say it, but it’s really the truth. We go into every game worrying about us.”
‘Can’t do it by yourself ’
Still, it did not hurt to put the recent game-winners in the memory banks. It’s one thing to have confidence, another to have evidence to back it.
“When Chris or when Gerald hits a shot or back when Eric hit a shot in Philly, that’s just big-time players make big plays,” Harden said. “And those guys are doing that.
“It helps a lot, man. These last few years, especially, I’ve learned that obviously you can’t do it by yourself. You need guys to step up, make big shots, make big plays. So, we have enough guys in here on any given night that can change a playoff series. So, that’s what you need. That’s what puts you over the top.”