Tucker finding ways to make a difference
On a team with two MVPs and one of the league’s most athletic centers, P.J. Tucker doesn’t need to score to exert his impact.
But in the Rockets’ last two games — wins over the 76ers and Nuggets by a combined 36 points — Tucker hasn’t scored at all while taking his fewest shots over a two-game stretch this season.
“You’ve gotta figure out a way to affect the game,” Tucker said. “That’s something I’ve grown to understand and know how to do. Each game’s different. Some games you get shots; some games you don’t. Some games you’ve gotta get offensive boards; you need to get the 5050 balls. It all changes.”
In December, Tucker averaged 8.9 rebounds and 7.6 points on close to seven shots per game. In his last two, the forward has missed his lone shot —a 3-pointer — in each but contribThe
uted 13 rebounds, two assists and two blocks in 71 total minutes.
Since joining Houston ahead of the 2017-18 season, Tucker has played 30-plus minutes with three or fewer field-goal attempts 23 times. He’s done so six times this season — all Rockets wins — while no other player has done so more than five times over the past three seasons.
His recent lack of scoring comes in the backdrop of a season in which he’s averaging career highs in minutes (36), rebounds (7.3) and blocks (0.5, tied with last year’s mark). His scoring (8.5 points) and field-goalattempt (6.5) averages are his third highest.
“Just all the little things,” coach Mike D’Antoni said of Tucker’s contributions. “Just his spirit, his energy, his talking. His getting extra possessions by getting offensive rebounds and all that.
“Even when he’s not scoring, that means they’re staying on him, which means Clint (Capela) gets 30. It’s kinda like, OK don’t give Clint 30. The only way you can’t do that is rotate from P.J., then he’ll hit the corner 3. So whether he scores or not is kind of irrelevant.”
That dynamic helped Capela set a season high with 30 points against the 76ers on Friday. As the Rockets prepare to face less daunting competition at Atlanta on Wednesday, the key to Capela extending that success is picking the right spots.
“It’s really encouraging,” D’Antoni said of Capela’s recent performances.
“There’s nothing that he’s done that he can’t do all the time. Now, he might not score like that, because people will rotate to him and P.J. will score more.”
D’Antoni intends to rest Russell Westbrook on Wednesday. Three games after returning from a knee injury, Eric Gordon is expected to play at Atlanta and then at Oklahoma City on Thursday.
“He’s going to have some periods where his shot doesn’t go or it’s going to take him awhile,” D’Antoni said of Gordon. “Usually, you start off really well, then you have a little dip, then you come back. So he just has to power through it.
“The plan going into it is he’ll play both (Wednesday and Thursday), but if he has a little soreness or whatever, then he won’t.”
Regardless, Wednesday’s game is an opportunity for the Rockets to attack one of their nagging shortcomings. To do so, Tucker wants to see the team play aggressive early, even if that doesn’t mean he’s scoring.
“That’s been our Achilles’ heel since I’ve been here, kinda playing down to our competition,” Tucker said. “For us, I think it’s more challenging in those games, because in all the big games, we usually play well. In not-so-big games, we don’t bring as much energy, as much focus, and tend to get in trouble.
“Every night, you’ve just gotta be prepared to do what it takes to win.”