Offense clicking as Pelicans, Williamson roll into town
The Rockets returned to Houston after a discouraging East Coast loss vowing to make amends, and they then rolled up a 30-point lead on the way to knocking off the Lakers on Monday.
The Pelicans return to Houston after another discouraging, though very different, East Coast loss looking to make amends when they play the Rockets on Wednesday.
The Rockets have to hope their win Monday carries over to Wednesday in ways previous wins have not.
Unlike the Rockets’ lowenergy start and too-late finish in the loss to the Nets on Saturday that triggered the revival against the Lakers, the Pelicans played extremely well against the Celtics for most of the night Monday before stumbling down the stretch. The Pelicans led the Celtics by as much as 17 and by 11 in the fourth quarter before succumbing to a 22-6 Boston run.
The Pelicans have been wildly unpredictable. Since demolishing the Jazz at home, they have lost their past three games.
The Rockets have won the first two meetings with the Pelicans this season, but they have won consecutive games just once since a Dec. 23 victory in New Orleans. They believed they found their toughness and determination in the win against the Lakers, but consistency has been even more elusive.
With a win, the Rockets would surpass last season’s total of 22 wins.
It takes two
The Rockets have rarely had Jalen Green and Alperen Şengün going simultaneously, as they were Monday. This makes sense since no one has had players so young produce in the same game as Green and Şengün did against the Lakers.
Green and Şengün became the first players 21 or younger to each get at least 30 points and 10 rebounds in the same game.
That represented a breakthrough not likely to continue unless Green begins averaging more rebounds per game than he had ever collected in any of his first 186 games.
He and Şengün can continue to score. Since scoring fewer than 20 points in nine consecutive games, Green is averaging 20.5 points in his past 18 outings. Şengün has averaged 24 points on 55.8% shooting in the past 24 games, the first Rockets player to average at least 24 points and make at least 55% of his shots in a stretch of 24 games since Hakeem Olajuwon in 1992-93.
Şengün has averaged 30.5 points in the two games against the Pelicans this season, including a seasonhigh 37 in the win in New Orleans, when he scored 25 in the second half. But Green has been held to an average of 17 points in those games, making 2 of his 12 3pointers.
Herb Jones, the Pelicans’ outstanding defensive guard, is usually assigned to match up with Green but is questionable to play with right adductor soreness.
The Zion matchup
The Rockets called on Jeff Green to defend Zion Williamson in past games between the teams, helping to key the Nov. 12 win at Toyota Center.
Jabari Smith Jr. came back from his sprained ankle Monday and will get the first turns on Williamson, with Green an option off the bench, as he was in the previous meetings. Smith had 26 points and 11 rebounds in the Rockets’ win in New Orleans.
Williamson has played just six games against the Rockets in the four NBA seasons he has played, averaging 24.2 points on 61.9% shooting against them.
Averaging 22 points this season, the fewest of his career, he is second in the NBA in points in the paint, averaging 17.2 per game, and is one of three players averaging at least 21 points while making at least 58% of his shots.
Scoring surge
Though the Rockets won the first two meetings with the Pelicans, they have averaged just 105 points in those games. Their scoring has taken off lately, however. With 135 points against the Lakers on Monday, including the most they had scored in a first half (78) or through three quarters (108), the Rockets have topped 130 in three of their past four games.
They had surpassed 130 twice in their first 42 games of the season, when they had averaged 112.5 to rank 23rd in the league in scoring.
In the past four games, the Rockets have been sixth in the NBA in points per possession, scoring at a rate in that small sample size that would match the Pacers for the top offensive rating in NBA history.
Those four games are not enough to be considered a trend likely to continue, but it is a good start in that direction, especially since 105 points would not seem likely to be enough against a Pelicans team averaging 116.6.
Yes, he Cam
The Rockets’ surging rookie Cam Whitmore has not played against the Pelicans this season but enters the game on a good roll.
Whitmore on Monday scored 20 points with six rebounds in just 18 minutes off the bench. In his past three games, he is averaging 21 points and 8.7 rebounds.
The game could set up a good matchup of rookie scorers. Jordan Hawkins played in just one of the games against the Rockets, scoring 14 points in 41 minutes, making 4-of-11 shots. He did not play in the second meeting as the Pelicans were at full strength after the returns of Trey Murphy III and Jose Alvarado from injuries.
One of the rookies chosen for the Rising Stars game, Hawkins has averaged 10.5 points on 40.6% shooting and 39.1% 3-point shooting, all fewer than Whitmore, who was not selected but has played in 19 fewer games.
Defense without drama
Dillon Brooks’ matchup with Brandon Ingram will not get the attention that his get-togethers with LeBron James bring, but it will also be vital.
Ingram has averaged 25 points and five assists against the Rockets and is one of just 14 players in the NBA averaging at least 21 points and five assists per game. He had just two points in the fourth quarter in the Dec. 23 game in New Orleans, when the Rockets rallied for the win.
Ingram has not shot 3s well against the Rockets, making just 3 of his 13 attempts, but he is fifth in the league in mid-range field goals.