Game 1 effort without Westbrook helps team back up its elite talk
Most betting establishments listed the game as a pick ’em.
In non-gambling terms that means the experts determined that neither team had a significant advantage.
Clearly, the Rockets were not informed.
Houston isn’t the same team without Russell Westbrook, its injured whirlybird of a point guard, but it is still better than Oklahoma City.
Tuesday, the Rockets rolled past
the Thunder 123-108 to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven firstround playoff series, looking right at home in the NBA bubble.
Not game location, coronavirus protocol or Westbrook’s injury slowed the Rockets on this night, as they outscored the Thunder in each of the first three quarters before coasting to the finish line.
They made shots, they didn’t turn the ball over, they … wait for it … played good defense.
This is a Rockets team that will be difficult to beat. Smart and patient on offense, smart and resilient on defense.
This is a team the Thunder has no chance against.
This is also a Rockets team that isn’t anywhere near full strength.
Instead of getting shots of him bouncing up and down the court, television cameras caught an animated Westbrook, wearing a T-shirt that looked like the fashion designer fed it to a wild animal as part of the manufacturing process, bouncing up and down on the bench in support of his teammates’ efforts.
The Rockets didn’t enter this one thinking of that as an excuse.
“It’s an opportunity for guys to play big minutes,” said James Harden, who led the way with 37 points and 11 rebounds. “It was a total team effort … we’re gonna need that consistently.”
Consistency at that level is the stuff championships are made of. Ah, but there is a reason the Rockets-Thunder opener was deemed a coin flip.
Houston entered the postseason on a three-game slide, having surrendered nearly 122 points a game in those losses.
After falling behind by 17 points early in the second quarter, OKC had a few stretches where it scored on consecutive trips and appeared to be making a run, but this one was never in doubt.
“They’re a good team so there are going to be periods where you can’t stop ’em,” Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said.
Um, the Rockets aren’t a great defensive team, so there are going to be periods where they can’t stop anybody.
The key Tuesday was they limited those spurts with smart effort and solid rebounding. The Thunder never locked into a rhythm, and with the Rockets moving the ball and scoring efficiently through the first three quarters, they couldn’t keep up.
Chris Paul, the future Hall of Famer who the Rockets gave up in a trade for Westbrook last offseason, almost posted a triple-double with 20 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.
On this night, with Westbrook sidelined by a strained quadriceps, the Thunder won the trade.
The Rockets will take the win. And, they hope, the series.
That is the way it should be. The Rockets consider themselves to be among the NBA elite. This isn’t a series that should concern an elite team.
As evenly matched as OKC and Houston are on paper, if the Thunder advances to the next round, it will be an upset. Should the Rockets move on, it will be expected.
With Game 2 on tap for Thursday, there is little worry of the Rockets looking ahead to a likely matchup against the Lakers.
That is more of a media- or fan-driven concern. Trust me, Los Angeles native Harden isn’t lying in bed in his Rockets red pajama set imagining the crowd shouting “Beat L.A.! Beat L.A.!”
No crowds. No chants. No commotion.
If anything, the playoff atmosphere in the bubble helps facilitate a better focus.
“At the end of the day, it’s basketball,” said Jeff Green, who came off the bench to score 22 points for the Rockets after averaging 14 points a game in the bubble restart eight games ago.
In 60 previous playoff games, only twice had Green scored more.
If Houston makes 48.3 percent of its shots, it will roll through this series. Harden said even with the good shooting percentage, the Rockets missed a lot of open shots.
“Our ball movement was excellent,” Harden said. “In Game 2, we gotta be even better than we were in Game 1.”
Keep it moving as it did Tuesday, and they’ll keep moving along.
Yeah, pick ’em.