Houston Rockets 2018/2019 Midway Point Season Review
First Half Brought Lows, Experiments, and… a Resurgence We’ve Never Seen
The Dunk. The Game. The Goal.
The Rockets got off to a shaky start in 2018. They got blown out by the Pelicans on Opening Night, and had trouble adjusting to Carmelo Anthony and an early-season ‘hangover.’ Houston started 1-5, and 11-14, before finally turning things around, winning 13 of their last 16 games to enter the second half of the season with a record of 24-17. How did things get turned around? Despite the injuries have really mounted almost every player on the roster this season. James Harden. That’s how. Playing the best basketball of his life. The first half amounted to experimenting with different rotations and new additions, dealing with injuries, and a sudden rejuvenation in play by James Harden. Carmelo Anthony took the court during the first 10 games, which didn’t work. Nothing against Melo, it just wasn’t a good fit for either party, and the Rockets went 4-6 in games Anthony played. Chris Paul, Eric Gordon, James Ennis, have all battled constant injuries it seems the entire first half. Houston has yet to play a game in which its entire roster is healthy. Injuries happen, but they just seem to swarm the Rockets like a plague. The injury bug is real and something Houston will be fighting against this season and beyond.
On December 11th, Houston stood at 11-14, and trailed at halftime to Portland. They were able to overcome the deficit, and improve to 12-14 in what would be the start of a turning point. The turn happened in the Rockets next game. December 13th, against the Lakers. LeBron’s first game donning the purple and gold in James Harden’s House. The matchup was a big one for both teams prior to tip, but no one could sense the storm that was about to come. Except for the Beard. LeBron James hit two fade-away jumpers to start the game in what looked like another disappointing Rockets loss, in a season full of then. All of a sudden, it happened. James Harden dunked on JaVale McGee and the rest is history. The Beard turned and flexed in the direction of LBJ, as if to tell him, “I’m the real King James” and finished the game with a 50-point triple-double. The first game of his 30-point streak, that Harden is still managing to keep alive.
The Rockets haven’t looked back since. Harden had arguably the defining game of his career, with the Rockets victory over the Warriors on Jan. 3rd. The Beard’s impossible 3 over two of the leagues best defenders (Draymond Green, Klay Thompson) was a sight to behold. The game felt like a statement game. Harden was able to beat the Warriors by himself. It should be interesting to see what happens when the Houston gets back to full health.
Houston finished the first half 13-3, after starting a dismal 1-5, and then 11-14. The Rockets seamlessly blended several key new acquisitions into the system. Danuel House Jr., who’s been tremendous and earned his spot in the rotation for the season. Austin Rivers, who has also been awesome and a lifesaver for the team since Chris Paul went down. Gary Clark has been a key rookie who’s showed plenty of promise since being picked up by the Rockets after going undrafted. Houston’s already hit rock bottom, and seen more adversity than all of last season. This will only make them better in the future once (if) the roster can ever play together completely healthy. All the adjusting and rough sailing should be finished for this team’s expected destination. If the Rockets can somehow avoid the injury bug come playoff time, this team has the potential to accomplish even greater things than last year’s squad. Last year’s team set the regular season franchise record with 65 wins. The only way this year’s team can top that is by bringing the Larry O’Brien Trophy back to Houston. Larry, we await with open arms. Come home. After 24 years, it’s finally time.