Howard says it’s crucial to stay in moment, regardless of calls
Dwight Howard came away from the first two games of the playoff series against the Warriors and Tuesday’s video session believing Golden State gets calls the Rockets do not. But he said the Rockets cannot let that bother them when they are playing the NBA champions.
“Sometimes we get (so) caught up in not getting the call, upset that they miss certain plays, that we don’t concentrate on the next play,” Howard said. “So we have to keep moving forward, understanding that they won the championship. In order to beat them, you have to play better than them, because you’re not going to get any calls.
“It’s just like a boxing match. If you want to beat the champ, you have to knock them out. If you expect to win a decision, it’s going to be hard. So you have to knock them out.”
Howard, who fouled out of Game 2 in Oakland, said he cannot get the same treatment as the Warriors.
“They just get away with it,” Howard said. “I’m definitely not going to get away with doing stuff. I have to make sure I do it at the right times.
“It’s all about the next play. It sounds so textbook, but it’s true. We make a mistake, they score, we’ve got to get the ball out, move it up the floor. It’s the playoffs. Teams are going to score. You’re going to miss shots, but you have to move on to the next play and stay in the moment.”
Two-pronged preparation
With Warriors guard Stephen Curry again listed as questionable with a sprained right ankle, the Rockets have had to prepare for Golden State’s offense when Curry’s 3-point shooting range is a threat and when Shaun Livingston brings a midrange scorer.
“If (Curry) is on the floor, your defense is spread out a little bit more because you’re worried about picking him up at the halfcourt line,” Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “There’s a little bit of tweaks between him and Shaun Livingston. Shaun is a very good player who knows how to make you pay. Your defense shrinks a little bit when Steph’s not on the floor.”
The Rockets said their mentality has to remain the same whether Curry plays or misses a second consecutive game.
“Obviously, he poses a different threat when he’s out there,” guard Jason Terry said. “We can’t worry about who’s playing, who’s not. We have to come out there and impose our will with the physicality, come out aggressively offensively, and live with the results.
“Our key defensively is to bring a physical presence on both ends of the floor regardless of who’s in those uniforms. Chris Mullin, Mitch Richmond and Tim Hardaway could come out in those uniforms, and we’ve still got to play the same way.”
3rd-grade tenet still applicable
The Rockets have allowed an average of 21.5 second-chance points in the first two games, nearly seven more than they allowed in the regular season, when they gave up the most in the NBA.
The Rockets were last in the league in defensive rebounding percentage but described a solution as obvious as the problem.
“Put a body on somebody,” interim coach Bernie Bickerstaff said. “Whether he is bigger than you, whether he is smaller, put your body on him. Hit him. Box out. Third-grade stuff.”
As with the regular season, the majority of offensive rebounds the Rockets have allowed have come when big men have to help to cut off dribble penetration.
“Box out,” center Dwight Howard said. “Usually, when the bigs go help, block shots, that’s when those guys tend to get the offensive rebounds. The crack-back guy has to come in and get that big, push him out of bounds, hold him, do whatever he has to do so he won’t get that rebound.”