JAZZ’S DEFENSE NO MATCH FOR HARDEN, ROCKETS
Harden, Paul put on their superstar clothes, orchestrate first-half scoring flurry
James Harden calmly bounced from left to right, faked an attack, then again darted straight toward an uncontested rim.
Chris Paul let the ball playfully roll along his fingertips, faked a pass toward the left side of the court, then found P.J. Tucker waiting in the right corner for another wide-open 3-pointer.
There were 34 combined points, nine assists and six rebounds from the Rockets’ superstar duo by halftime. And if I didn’t know better, I would think the NBA’s No. 1 seed was already toying with the tired, beat-up Utah Jazz just one game into this Western Conference second-round series.
“We just try to score, basically,” Paul said.
The Beard and CP3 got everything they wanted (and
more) Sunday afternoon at Toyota Center. By the time a 25-point halftime lead became a 110-96 victory, I was left with three recurring thoughts.
1.) There’s no way the Jazz can hang with the Rockets if Harden and Paul keep pairing up like this.
2.) Utah needs Ricky Rubio more than ever.
3.) My preseries prediction of 4-2 Rockets might need to be revised by a couple games.
Harden and Paul were that dominant in Game 1. The day after Golden State rolled New Orleans, the real 65-win team showed up in downtown Houston and did exactly what it was supposed to against a No. 5 seed that very likely peaked when it overcame Oklahoma City’s fractured, selfish Little Three.
“James and Chris were both on fire,” Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said.
The offense was sharp. The defense was solid. The paint was protected, the arc was exploited, and Utah rookie Donovan Mitchell was carefully guarded from the opening minute.
The Rockets mostly had everything. The Jazz often had nothing. And without Rubio, it’s already almost impossible to imagine this series changing enough for Utah to find a way to overcome the Rockets’ full-court firepower.
Harden picked his spots, deferred and set up open teammates. He still ended with a game-high 41 points, sank momentum-spurring 3s, and was clearly the best baller on the court.
Snyder: Harden ‘a special player’
“He’s a special player. It’s hard to give credit to all the things that he does. It so impacts the game in so many ways,” said Utah coach Quin Snyder, whose resilient team outscored the Rockets 57-46 during the second half but never really threatened. “You have to try to make it harder for him in so many different facets, and it requires your whole team to guard him, because he’s so capable of finding any weakness in a given situation. A good player can see their man, the help. A better player can see the three. (Harden) sees everything, and that’s what makes him so unique.”
Paul was a magician with the ball in hand, perfectly playing his part and dribbling circles around a Utah defense that ranked second in the NBA in efficiency during the regular season.
Combined, Nos. 13 and 3 totaled 58 points and 10 made 3s. The latter was more than the Jazz’s entire team made from beyond the arc.
“We need them at that level all series and the rest of the way,” said veteran forward Luc Mbah A Moute, whose much-needed return to the rotation knocked Gerald Green to the far end of the bench. “When they play like that, it’s big for us.”
Thanks to The Beard and CP3, the Rockets owned the Jazz from the tip. D’Antoni’s squad – which has yet to play a full, hard 48 minutes since the postseason began – let up after its 64-39 lead at the break.
“Halftime happened, and we didn’t have a lot of the juice we should have had,” a coach seeking NBA Finals perfection said.
It ultimately didn’t matter in Game 1 of this initially lopsided series.
Utah cut the Rockets’ lead to 15 as the fourth quarter neared. Paul drained a 27-foot 3 with 0.1 seconds left on the clock, making it 86-68 home team.
A Rudy Gobert putback dunk cut the Rockets’ lead to 89-77 with 8:35 to go. Harden then drilled a 26-foot 3 that put the Rockets back up by 15.
Impressive balance
“We’re really hard to beat. If not — I don’t want to say ‘unbeatable,’ obviously,” D’Antoni said. “But when we’re playing defense the way we’re playing, those two guys were stellar on offense. … We just have a nice balance, and we’ve got two of the best point guards in the world. Then when James went out, Chris took over.”
Eric Gordon was off again. Mbah A Moute made little impact on the offensive end. Ryan Anderson didn’t score.
With Harden and Paul better than anything the Jazz could offer, it didn’t matter. The Rockets led by 27, won by 14, and are three wins away from the Western Conference finals.
When Utah doubled Harden, Paul was attacking or setting up another open teammate.
When the Jazz focused on Paul, Harden was about to make the net sway.
“What (Harden) does with his stepbacks and he’s 7-of-12 from 3s – I don’t know how you guard that,” D’Antoni said. “I don’t know how you guard him going to the rim because of his strength, passing ability. He’s got so many ways to beat you. And then the fouls — if you try to take something away, he’s smart. He’s one of the best.”
An off game for the exhausted Jazz. A 64-point first half for a 65-win team.
Utah couldn’t hang with these Rockets in Game 1.
Harden and Paul are finding their playoff rhythm, as a superstar duo, in late April.