These Rockets have Warriors’ attention
OAKLAND >> Daryl Morey never bothered hiding it. The Houston Rockets general manager wanted a piece of the Warriors all along.
He said so openly and often. “It’s the only thing we think about,” Morey said on ESPN Radio in December. “I think I’m not supposed to say that, but we’re basically obsessed with, ‘How do we beat the Warriors?’ ”
And when the Rockets beat the Warriors 116-108 on Jan. 20 to capture the season series 2-1, Rockets center Clint Capela all but declared a changing of the guard: “We are better than them.”
The Rockets don’t need to talk anymore. After taking care of New Orleans in five games, Golden State will face Houston in the Western Conference finals. The series starts Monday in Houston.
“We don’t have to run around talking about how bad we want to play somebody,” Warriors
forward Draymond Green said, pointedly. “We want to win another championship, and it doesn’t matter who is in the way of that.”
There’s a backstory to Morey’s mission. The Warriors eliminated the Rockets from the playoffs in 2015 and ’16.
This time, though, Houston has the homecourt advantage that comes with being the No. 1 seed. They also have a roster constructed to keep pace with The Splash Brothers, as well as a newfound emphasis on defense.
Oh, and the Rockets have one other thing: The Warriors’ attention.
“We know that they’re a great team. We know that they are ready,” Coach Steve Kerr said. “And we’ll be ready for them.”
With that in mind, here are five things to watch during what could be a wildly entertaining series.
1. Win the 3-point contest
Think the Warriors launch from long-range? They look gun-shy compared to Houston’s heavers.
The Rockets made 1,256 3-pointers this season, the most in NBA history. (The previous record was the 1,181 they made last season.) The key to beating Houston?
“Defending the 3-point line,” guard Klay Thompson said. “Not fouling. Making them take twopointers, which they don’t like to do very much because they have so many great shooters.”
A ridiculous 50.2 percent of Houston’s regularseason shots were 3-pointers, and they had seven players sink at least 100 — James Harden (265), Eric Gordon (218), Trevor Ariza (170), Chris Paul (144), Ryan Anderson (131), P.J. Tucker (115) and Gerald Green (110).
“It’s a series where you’ve got a lot of shooting out there for Houston, a lot of one-on-one play,” Kerr said. “We have to stay in front of them.”
2. Protect against Chris Paul
The Rockets’ biggest
move of the offseason — and one they made with the Warriors in mind — was acquiring Chris Paul in a blockbuster trade with the Los Angeles Clippers.
“We felt like with James Harden in his prime and Chris Paul in his prime this gives us a real shot to chase the juggernaut teams that are out there,” Morey said after the late June deal. “This puts us right there with them.”
Paul did his part Tuesday night as the Rockets closed out the Utah Jazz in Game 5 of the conference semifinals. He became the first player to have 40 points, 10 assists, and 0 turnovers in a playoff game since turnovers became an official stat in 1977-78, according to Elias Sports.
“Obviously, they’re a much different team this year with Chris Paul and many role players,” Thompson said late Tuesday. “It’s going to be a new challenge, and one we will embrace.”
3. Contain Capela
The 6-foot-10, 240-pound center led the NBA in field-goal percentage (65.2), while finishing second in blocks (1.85) and eighth in rebounding (10.8).
He’s also kind of a stealth key to the Rockets’ success. They were 25-2
when he scored 15 points or more and 36-5 when he had two or more blocks.
How the Warriors defend Capela will be one of the intriguing chess matches of this series. They could consider Green, who put in pivotal moments against Anthony Davis during the Warriors’ series victory over the New Orleans Pelicans.
Kerr called Green “the perfect modern-day big. He can guard everybody.”
Kevon Looney could also get time on Capela. The sleeper here is Jordan Bell, the athletic 6-9, 224-pounder willing to take on bigger bodies. “I think he could be a factor,” Kerr said. “I like what I’ve seen of him, not only on the floor the last couple games but in practice. His focus is there, his energy, his enthusiasm.”
4. Handle the road
For the first time in the Kerr era, the Warriors will open a playoff series away from Oracle Arena.
It’s a daunting challenge. Houston was 34-7 at home this season. Their success included 20 straight wins from Jan. 10 to April 5, a streak that tied for the longest single-season home winning streak in franchise history (they won the first 20 home games in 1985-86).
Andre Iguodala, the Warriors’ sage swingman,
saw a chance for some reverse psychology. Starting on the road is a positive thing, he said.
“You try to turn that into an advantage for you,” Iguodala said. “We’ve had a lot of Game 1s here where we get comfortable and it takes us a little bit of time to put our foot down. … We know we have to be locked in and be ready to go on the road.”
5. Fear (or at least respect) the Beard
Harden, the presumptive NBA MVP, joined Michael Jordan (1987-88) as the only players to average at least 30 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds and 1.70 steals in a single season.
The Warriors won only one of three regular-season matchups against Houston. Their lone victory came when Harden was sidelined by a hamstring strain, a 124-114 win in Houston on Jan. 4.
Harden’s presence in this star-studded conference finals is part of the reason Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry is among those eager to watch the epic Western Conference showdown.
“I think it will be very entertaining,” he said. “I think the people will have a great time watching that series. They have great players out there.”