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| Courtesy of NBA.com |
As a mea culpa for going on vacation right before the NBA season, DeQuiency will be writing weekly updates about the Rockets' season. Now we here at Two Eighty Eight aren't exactly sure how he's going to do this since he doesn't have CSN, but he is the boss so we're going to let him try.
So where are we now?
Extremely happy that no one came back from Mexico with Montezuma's Revenge.(Although watching James Harden limping on a twisted ankle gave me a queasy feeling). Another column, another winning run, as the Rockets wrap up the week with a 3-0 record with wins over the T'wolves, 76ers, and the cheap-ass Thunder.
Quick tangent: I watched the HOU/OKC game on NBATV last night, and as a fan, there is nothing worse than watching a game and being forced to listen to the other team's broadcast. Every foul on the Rockets was the best call ever and any call on the Thunder is "ticky-tacky" and "absurd". In the third quarter, Thunder PG Sebastian Telfair damn near puts his elbow through Beverley's throat, knocking him to the ground, all while the broadcast team accuse him of flopping. Ugh give me Bill, Matt, and Clyde any day of the week. Now back to our regular column...
If you have read any of my baseball columns, you know that I am a bit of a believer in sabermetrics. I like to use the numbers to validate what is happening on the field and to predict future performance.
On offense, the Rockets are 18th in scoring at 98.3 points per game and 20th in Offensive Rating* at 101.7. No team has attempted and made more 3-pt shots per game, 32.4 and 12.3 respectively, while also in the top 10 for free throws attempted (30.1) and made (20.7). They take the fewest amount of long 2-point shots, which NBA describes as between 15-19 feet, at 4.8 per game. I swear, the Rockets' playbook only has these 4 plays:
- A Harden drive that leads to either a foul, lay-up, or dunk
- An entree pass to Howard that again leads to either a foul, lay-up, or dunk.
- An entree pass to Howard that brings a double-team then 3 or 4 passes around the court that leads to a wide open 3 in the corner
- Harden over dribbling and jacking up a long 3
On the defensive side, the Rockets allow the least amount of points per game at 88.9 per and are first in Defensive Rating with 91.5 points surrendered. They are the stingiest team allowing opposing teams to score on only 40.3% of field goals and a ridiculous 28.1% on 3's, both percentages are best in the league. Top 10 in both steals and blocks and....wait a minute....
Hold on....the 3-point chucking, sometimes ball-hogging, foul drawing Houston Rockets are winning games because of DEFENSE? I'm as shocked as you are.
The real question is, can this new defensive shift continue? I'm leaning towards yes; with 3 starters who rate between above-average to excellent defensively (Howard, Beverley, and Ariza), and Harden trying and not looking like this anymore, the sky is the limit.
Last week: 3-0
For the season: 9-1
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