Rockets start pursuit of NBA title with easy win over Thunder.
Harden pours in 37 but has plenty of help in smooth opening win
Had the Rockets gotten one of those crazy James Harden scoring nights, they’d have been just fine winning that way.
Had they spent the night playing pop-ashot and running up ridiculous scoring numbers, that would have worked.
Even if the young and learning Thunder had stumbled around The Fieldhouse on the NBA’s Florida campus throughout Game 1, the Rockets would have taken the win and moved on unconcerned with how they got it.
This was better. The Rockets rolled past the Thunder 123-108 on Tuesday the way they would want most, with the defense solid, the shooting sharp and, most of all, a wealth of weapons coming from all directions even as
Russell Westbrook was able only to cheer wildly from the Rockets’ bench.
“That’s what we have to do,” center Jeff Green said. “With one of our big guns out … we’re going to go out and attack as a team. Tonight was a good start.”
Facing a team that stymied them offensively in the regular season before the move to a fulltime small ball attack, the Rockets spent the night moving the ball to open looks that dramatically improved their shooting against the Thunder defense.
More than that, Eric Gordon stepped into Westbrook’s role attacking the basket, providing a similar jolt. And with Green handling the ball, the Rockets added a wrinkle to their offense that kept it humming along even while shorthanded.
The Rockets’ bench, ranked 28th in scoring during the regular season even when one of the reserves did not have to fill in with Westbrook out, outscored the Oklahoma City reserves 42-27.
“It’s key,” Harden said of the Rockets’ variety of offensive options. “We’re not sure when Russ is going to be back. It’s an opportunity for guys to step up and play big minutes and contribute to big-time games. We’re going to need that consistently.”
While Gordon had 21 points in 30 minutes and kept the offense working in the stints Harden was out when normally Westbrook handles the point, the Rockets added another twist. Green not only had 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting, he handled the ball so that on many possessions Harden did not have to.
“We’re just trying to put the defense on their heels, give them a different look,” Green said. “We know the focus is going to be on James. It’s just another opportunity to take that pressure off of him with Russell out to get everybody involved.”
Running pick-and-roll with Harden, Green got to the rim off the dribble but also drew the defense off Harden to allow him to work without the lane crowded.
“He has that ability, Jeff does,” Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said. “That’s what makes it so dangerous. It gets James off the ball. He can rest. He’s like a point guard center, whatever you want to call it. He caused a lot of problems for them.”
Harden got to the rim consistently before he found his 3-point touch, finishing with 37 points in 34 minutes, his 35th playoff game with at least 30 points in his eight seasons with the Rockets.
Chris Paul had 11 of his 20 points for the Thunder in the fourth quarter, adding 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Danilo Gallinari led Oklahoma City with 29 points, but the Thunder did not have their usual balanced scoring.
For the Rockets, Harden was not the only shooter to come around. While they opened the game making two of nine shots, their defense kept the game tight until they got so many open looks that they found shooters to knock them down.
The Rockets made just 23.3 percent of their 3point attempts in their three meetings with the Thunder during the regular season. They were 24-1 this season when making at least 37 percent of their 3s but just 20-27 when making below 37 percent.
In Game 1 on Tuesday, they made 38.5 percent. Ben McLemore, in the first playoff game of his sevenyear career, was 4-of-7 from deep, while Green and P.J. Tucker sank three 3-pointers each, nearly all off sharp ball movement.
“I really feel like when we’re on, when we’re right, when we’re rolling, we shouldn’t take bad shots,” D’Antoni said. “There should only be good shots.
“That’s the way we have to play.”
More than that, it was how the Rockets envisioned playing to start the postseason, faithfully trusting their style on both ends nearly exactly as they’d have drawn it up.
“If we play together and communicate, I know we’re going to be very successful,” Green said. “I know it’s going to be very tough for teams to match up with us.”