Confident House is thriving
Though Danuel House Jr. has seemed increasingly comfortable in the Rockets’ offense and with his role, scoring in double figures in consecutive games for the first time in his nine games since he was signed off the Rio Grande Valley Vipers’ roster, he is no more confident.
He brought the confidence with him.
“I … had that,” House said. “I mean, I was top 15, top 20 in my class coming out of high school. In college I was a honorable mention All-American so the confidence part I wasn’t worried about. I just had to correct myself defensively, and continue to lead the defense in energy. That’s my job.”
House, 6-7, has won the confidence of his teammates to the point guard
James Harden said he has been inspired to improve his own play.
“It’s encouraging to see, especially a young guy, just out there working, wanting to get better and wanting to learn and compete,” Harden said. “It makes me want to get better, also. After practice, after we go through the opposing team, we stay after, we play one-on-one from different spots on the floor, working on being able to guard and get a bucket. As you can see, he’s been doing an unbelievable job on both ends of the floor. He will continue to get better.”
House made nine of 16 shots in his past two games, but has repeatedly said his emphasis is on defending with consistent energy, matching the expectations the Rockets have for him. House quickly moved ahead of Gary
Clark as the primary backup at power forward and has been also playing at small forward since the injury to James Ennis III.
“He’s keeping high hands, not getting silly fouls,” D’Antoni said. “His athleticism is sorely needed. It’s a great thing to have on the floor, the ability to run the floor, the ability to block a shot or dunk.
“You have to be able to influence the game without making shots, a little bit like P. J. ( Tucker ) does. If P.J. makes a shot, great. If he doesn’t make a shot, he’s still good. If we can come with that mentality, if he can bring the energy every night the way he has been, then he’ll be a positive, no matter what.”
On a two-way contract after he was released by the Warriors out of training camp, House said he was never concerned that he would find a place in the NBA.
“Nah, you have to keep trucking,” House said. “Got to put your head down and keep working.”
Grizzlies pose new challenges
Going from a highpaced game in an electric atmosphere and on a nationally televised stage, the Rockets will face the slow-down Grizzlies in Memphis on Saturday, offering a different challenge than the win over the Lakers.
But the Rockets said they are too far down in the standings and behind the Grizzlies to have a letdown.
“Whether it’s tough or not is beside the point; we have to do it,” coach Mike
D’Antoni said. “If you want to be one of the top teams in the league. If you want to get on a winning streak — which we need to — you have to just look at the standings, where we are, what the stakes are.
“The pace is determined by us. No one determines how fast we go except us. If the ball goes through the rim or there’s a missed shot, you have to push it. Even in a halfcourt setting, we have to put some energy into it. If we do that, impose our will on them more times than they can make us not do it, we have a good chance of winning.”
Though the Rockets are ranked 29th in pace, ahead of only the Grizzlies in the NBA statistics, that measures pace in games, rather than offensively. According to Cleaning the Glass, the Rockets are in transition offensively 12thmost often in the league, the Grizzlies 27th.