Poor shooting falls into trap
The Rockets on Wednesday made just 7 of 29 on 3-pointers they took with the closest defender more than 6 feet away in their loss to the Warriors. But the Rockets spent little time in Friday’s video session emphasizing that when shooting the ball, it is good to have it go in.
“The thing we tried to tell them, we talked about, we shot worse against San Antonio, so why did we beat San Antonio?” Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said. “They were trapping, and we shot worse. There are games we shot a lot worse and still won. I just think that defensively, we didn’t get any breaks out, and all the steals, or disrupted them. We didn’t have our energy to play like we needed to play.
“We just have to get a little bit mentally tougher. When things aren’t going well shooting-wise, we just have to pick it up in other areas and win the game. It happens during a season. You accept it and go on.”
In the Rockets’ win against the Spurs, they made 4 of 20 3-pointers when wide open but shot much worse on open 3s (with the nearest defender 4 to 6 feet away) than against the Warriors, making just 4 of 14 of those shots. The Rockets made 7 of 17 open 3-pointers against the Warriors, even while missing 22 wide-open 3-point attempts.
D’Antoni said the scheme the Warriors used was “the same” as many teams have tried against the Rockets.
“We just didn’t play well,” he said.
The Rockets played a stretch of eight consecutive games in which teams played versions of the midcourt traps on James Harden that the Warriors used with the Raptors taking that to extremes in the Rockets’ win in Toronto.
Russell Westbrook said the Rockets would feel “great” if teams defend them as the Warriors did. But he did think more attention needed to be paid to the games in which the Rockets succeeded against those trapping defenses.
“I think it’s very interesting, though, you guys only ask about that when we lose,” Westbrook said. “Ask about it when we win, too. I think it’s funny.”
The Nets on Saturday will likely use a zone against the Rockets. The Raptors trapped out of the zone, but either way, the Rockets believe they can get the shots they prefer against any defense they are likely to see.
“Zone, just spread the floor,” D’Antoni said. “Zone probably means James is guarded one-onone by somebody. We don’t really worry about what other teams do. Sometimes it does work. Something will always work if you don’t attack it right or make shots or move the ball. We’ll try to do what we do and do it at a high rate and then we’ll be fine.”
Clemons enjoying ‘Christmas gift’
Rockets guard Chris Clemons knew he and his family would soon celebrate the three-year contract he signed with the Rockets on Friday. He did not know when or how, but even if he knew through the season that the Rockets planned to convert his two-way contract to a standard NBA deal, it was special when that became official.
“Nice little Christmas gift,” Clemons said. “It’s a bit of a relief. I’m happy that my family is really happy about it. We’re going to celebrate as soon as I can get them all together. That’s something my dad usually comes up with. I’m excited to see what he comes up with.”
Clemons was the thirdleading scorer in NCAA Men’s Basketball history but went undrafted out of Campbell. He impressed the Rockets in summer league and training camp and filled in effectively when the Rockets were shorthanded, averaging 4.8 points in 8.2 minutes per game in the 20 games he has played this season. He said that can show that undrafted players can find a niche in the NBA.
“Gary (Clark) did the same thing last year,” Clemons said. “Undrafted guy, came in with a (twoway) deal. It’s definitely possible. I always had faith in myself that I was going to eventually come to this day. To everybody that comes into the draft and not get drafted, don’t get discouraged, man. Continue to work. It will work out for you.
“I just thought I was very consistent through this whole process, constantly bringing energy, using my voice to be a part of this team even when I’m not on the court. I think some of those intangible things are reasons I was able to stay with this team.”