Rockets give NBA hope
The Houston Rockets took a 17-point lead on Golden State in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals on Saturday night and still led the Warriors by 10 at halftime. American sports fans allowed themselves to dream.
Then, of course, the unstoppable force that made the Warriors great kicked in. No, not the evil signing of Kevin Durant. The Splash Brothers turned Oracle Arena into the ultimate shooting gallery. Over the first 20 minutes of the second half, Klay Thompson and Steph Curry combined to make 11 of 15 3-point shots. Gone Swishing instead of just Wishing.
The Warriors won 11586 with a historic second half, outscoring Houston 64-25. Game 7 is Monday night in Houston, and you figure Golden State will close out the Rockets because they’ve got too much firepower and the NBA is a cold, cruel, dark world.
But no matter what happens in the Toyota Center, be of good cheer. The Rockets have delivered a priceless gift to the NBA and its fans. Hope.
That is no small thing. Hope sustains the most mundane of franchises, the most discouraged of fanbases.
Hope keeps fans in
Minnesota and Sacramento and Detroit coming back. Hope floats in small markets like Salt Lake City and Orlando and Oklahoma City, where the ultimate success has been within reach, only to be snuffed out. Hope floats in Gotham City, where two franchises have floundered for what seems like forever.
Hope sank when Durant signed with Golden State 23 months ago. The 2017 NBA playoff chase had all the drama of a Cuban election, and I don’t mean Mark. The Warriors breezed to the title and seemed quite poised to do the same this season.
But the Rockets combined hope with desire and smarts. Houston turned some solid players (primarily Patrick Beverley and Lou Williams) into a great player, Chris Paul, and supplemented by adding more good players. Signing P.J. Tucker, for example.
The Rockets had a good offseason, a great regular season and now get a home Game 7 against Golden State. Paul won’t play, just like he missed Game 6, which probably dooms Houston.
Some say it’s better to be lucky than good, while the wiser crowd knows the opposite is true, but the best is to be lucky and good. The Warriors looked vulnerable in Game 1 of the 2017 West finals, then Zaza Pachulia undercut Kawhi Leonard, and the Spurs were done. Now the Warriors look vulnerable in the 2018 West finals, and out goes CP3 with a nasty hamstring strain. When will providence join the side of the angels?
But Houston showed in the first half Saturday night that it can at least
compete with Golden State, even without Paul.
That’s what the Thunder shot for last summer, when it also traded for a superstar, Paul George, and signed supporting players. The Thunder’s makeover didn’t take as well as Houston’s, and OKC’s season went in the disappointment bin.
But the Rockets have shown this May that at least challenging Golden State is possible. That really wasn’t thought possible when this season started.
Which should empower all good teams. For all the hubris from people like me, who for the second straight season declared Golden State’s season more coronation than crusade, the Rockets showed that even ultra-talented teams can be confronted.
For the Thunder next season to pull a Houston, George must sign up to stay. If he doesn’t, the Thunder’s uppercrust hopes are cooked, of course. But if George returns, Sam Presti, with roster construction, and Billy Donovan, with team building, can go back to work and see if the next concoction works better than the most recent.
Same with Utah, New Orleans, San Antonio and maybe even Portland. Every solid Western Conference team has to feel emboldened by Houston’s performance.
Odds aren’t great that Golden State can be brought down next season. Or Monday night. Lots of talent still wearing the Bay Bridge jersey. But at least the Warriors don’t look unbeatable. Thanks, Rockets. Houston, you are helping to solve a problem.
Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at (405) 760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM98.1. You can also view his personality page at newsok. com/berrytramel.