Joke City: Losing Streak Hits 11 Games, as Grizzlies Embarrass Rockets, 133-84
Rocket Bottom. Noladipo. Looking Ahead.
If you thought matters couldn’t get much worse for the Houston Rockets, Sunday night showed a glimpse of what Rocket-Bottom feels like. Even if the squad continues to lose games, Sunday night’s embarrassing bow-down to Memphis feels different. In a game where Ja Morant scored only 6 points, the Griuzz gave the Rockets their worst loss since 1986, eating Houston alive, 133-84, extending the Rockets skid to 11 games. John Wall scored 14 points on torrid shooting. At one point Houston missed 25 consecutive threes. If this wasn’t the worst loss in franchise history, it’s certainly on the short list of contenders. A 49-point loss to a team with a then-losing record, throw in the fact Houston was at home, and it’s tough to throw this game aside. This one stings. As they say the truth hurts, and it appears the Rockets are headed for full-tank mode.
Victor Oladipo declined a 2-year, $45.2 million dollar extension from Houston, signaling he wants out of H-Town. Whether he gets dealt before the trade deadline, or the Rockets hold on to him for the rest of this season remains to be seen. Expect Oladipo, along with Tucker, to be dealt as the trade deadline approaches on March 25th. That leaves Houston with John Wall, Christian Wood (whenever he returns, hopefully after the All-Star break), Eric Gordon, and a young new core of supporting role players to try and rebuild a new era of Rockets basketball.
Despite the 11th straight loss, and the vibe surrounding the squad at the moment. All isn’t lost. Houston still has a chance to make the playoffs with more than half of the season still remaining. Obviously, they’ll have to improve their play on the court, but in a season with a lot of parity throughout the league, the Rockets still have a legitimate chance to make the playoffs if they can get back to the way they were playing before the skid. And hopefully, in terms of last night, Houston was just looking ahead. And they might be doing the same on Monday night, the second of a back-to-back, as on Wednesday, the game everyone’s been waiting for hits the bright lights. James Harden returns to Houston with his new team, the hot Brooklyn Nets, in what should be an emotional game to say the least. The Rockets still have one more game before they matchup against Harden for the first time since 2012. It would be great to get a win on Monday, otherwise #13 will be looking to give Houston their 13th consecutive loss. And knowing Harden, he’s also had Wednesday’s game circled on his calendar. And there’s nothing more the Beard would love to do than to put the dagger in the Rockets’ season, and really show them what rock-bottom feels like. But first, Houston hosts the Cavs on Monday night in hopes of avenging last Wednesday’s loss in Cleveland. A loss to the Cavs again, and the Rockets enter Wednesday’s Harden showdown with little confidence, and at the risk of officially hitting Rocket-Bottom.