Ball movement fuels 3-for-all
The Rockets took down the Oklahoma City Thunder 136-106 on Monday night thanks to a shooting display the NBA had seen only once — and never before this season.
On Dec. 29, the Milwaukee Bucks drained 29 3pointers in a 144-97 win over the Miami Heat, setting the record for 3s made by a team in a game. The Rockets fell just short of matching that record Monday, hitting 28 of their own to break the franchise record while extending their winning streak to six games.
This output, coming from the 21st-ranked team in 3-point percentage in the NBA heading into Monday, was unexpected to say the least. What exactly changed?
“When you move the ball like that, you’re unpredictable,” said sixth man Eric Gordon, who led the Rockets with 25 points and tied DeMarcus Cousins with five 3-pointers. “A team can’t really scout and slow us down when we’re playing like that. Moving the ball, guys are taking the right shots. As long as we play like that, I’ll take our chances over anybody.”
While “selfish” might not be the right word to describe this team before its winning streak, the Rockets sit 24th in the league with 23.4 assists per game. Certainly, ball movement had not been their strongest skill.
Prior to the trade that sent James Harden to Brooklyn and brought Victor Oladipo to Houston, the Rockets ranked 26th in passes per game. An isolation-oriented offense contributed to that lack of ball movement. Since the trade, they have had the second-most passes per game.
That newfound “unselfish” style of play has created a variety of open shots, ultimately leading to an easier time knocking down the deep ball.
The Rockets now sit 14th in the NBA in 3-point shooting percentage thanks to Monday’s performance. Over the last six games, they have shot 39.6 percent from beyond the arc. Stretch that over the entire season, and Houston is a top-five 3-point shooting team.
Getting 28 3s to fall every game is certainly unsustainable but moving back into the upper echelon of 3point teams is well within the Rockets’ reach.
“I think you see the team coming together as far as our unselfish play and guys figuring out where other guys can be successful, and the ball movement has been really, really good,” coach Stephen Silas said. “What were we, 28 for 52 tonight, 28 3s? Because we’re moving the ball off of penetration, rolls, all of those things.
“It’s really fun to watch the group come together in that way.”
About as unsustainable as hitting 28 shots from deep in a game is taking 52 of them. Houston averages only 39.2 per game, and if not for the large lead and the chance to make history, the Rockets would likely not have come close to attempting as many as they did Monday.
They took 16 3-pointers in the final quarter alone, including their last seven field-goal attempts. It was the kind of display seen only when a game is well out of reach and players are putting up 3s just to see how many will fall.
Of course, having guys on the bench begging for more 3s always helps.
“Toward the end, guys started screaming to shoot,” Cousins said. “I had no clue what was going on (as far as the record), but at the end guys started screaming, ‘Shoot the ball!’ So I just fired up two long balls.”
Breaking the NBA record for 3s, which belonged to the Rockets before Milwaukee’s 29 eclipsed the 27 Houston had in a 2019 game against the Suns, would have been nice, but extending the winning streak — which now has them over .500 at 10-9 — was much more important. But the Rockets have knocked down over 40 percent of their 3s in three of their last five games, so sustaining 3point excellence through ball movement and unselfish play is another top goal.
Once that happens, maybe the record will come with it.
“Oh, no question,” Gordon said when asked if he wanted the record. “And, uh, we’ll get there.”