Lethal Punch: Lakers End Rockets Season, Crush Houston 119-96
Game Over. Changes at the Top. Closing Window.
Houston’s season ended on Saturday night as the Rockets got blowout by the Lakers, 119-96. After winning the first game of the series, Houston became lifeless, and L.A. won four straight to force immediate changes in Harden and the team’s offseason. The Rockets were never in Game 5. They trailed to start the game 15-2. Whether it was the desire to go home, getting sick of the bubble, or just plain tired of giving effort, Houston had none to give in their final game of the season. Personally, I think House’s shenanigans put everything in a tailspin, blind-sighted the team, and led the Rockets to misery. House was a huge part of the rotation and was playing his best ball of his career, but after a life-changing mistake, House won’t be back as a Rocket next season.
Changes are already being made at the top. Head Coach Mike D’Antoni announced he’s resigning. Although, rumors were starting from day one of this season of Mike being axed at the end of this season, regardless the results. D’Antoni was a great coach for the Rockets, but suffered too many unfortunate cases of bad luck (CP3’s 2018 injury, this season’s House incident), to lead Houston to a title. The squad needs to find a coach who will motivate Harden to finally perform when the lights are brightest: deep in the playoffs.
Despite another successful season in terms of winning more games than losing, time’s starting to run out on the Rockets chances at the grand prize. Houston’s window for a championship in the James Harden era is closing. The Beard just turned 31 about a month ago. With his durability, Harden has at least 2-to-3 more years remaining as one of the league’s top-5 players. But P.J. Tucker is 35, and he’s not getting any younger. Westbrook is also 31, so Houston needs to find the right coach for next season. The NBA should be wide-open for at least the next few years with no dominant team on the landscape. If Houston can stay healthy and somehow avoid their annual playoff curses, the Rockets still have a chance to win the title in the next five years.