Rockets Fly into Mile High for Tough Test Against Nuggets
Mile High Matinee. Lofty Comparisons. After the Break.
Houston makes their first visit to the Mile High City as the Rockets face the Denver Nuggets in a Saturday afternoon tilt. Denver is 4-4 this season, and coming off two straight losses to the Grizzlies in Memphis. Nuggets’ coach Mike Malone will no doubt have his team prepared to snap their losing streak. This afternoon will be a tough a matchup for the Rockets. This young squad has never felt the side effects that come with playing in the altitude. Hopefully, they are young and athletic enough to grab an early lead, and possibly hang on for the win. That’s asking a lot. The Nuggets are favorites to finish near the top of the West this season, and they have the league’s reigning MVP, Nikola Jokic, arguably the best big man in basketball.
Alperen Sengun has already drawn early comparisons to Nikola Jokic. With Daniel Theis out again, Sengun will get the starting nod, and his toughest matchup to date. It should be fun seeing the crafty rookie battle the NBA’s best big man. He’ll be getting assistance from Christian Wood, who’s been a double-double machine during this road trip. So far this season, Jalen Green’s had two good shooting nights, and six poor shooting nights. Hopefully Green can start to find some consistency with his shooting, the weakest part of his game at the moment. Once Jalen’s shots fall with regularity, he’ll be playing like the Rookie of the Year, a title many expect to be Green’s at season’s end. Kevin Porter Jr. needs to run a low-turnover show if Houston wants any chance to shock the Nuggets this afternoon. KPJ took better care of the ball in Phoenix, and he’ll look to duplicate that performance today.
The Rockets have struggled mightily coming out of halftime this season. The third quarter has haunted Houston in each game. Despite getting off to a solid start last game in the third quarter, the Rockets slowed down and were outscored by 12 points. If Houston can maintain their focus and tempo that they’ve built first-half leads with in the last two games, the Rockets have a chance to pull the giant upset. If the turnovers are an early problem, Houston has no chance in Denver’s altitude. It’s the first of a back-to-back for the squad, so we’ll see how deep Stephen Silas decides to use his bench. If it’s a blowout, expect the starters to rest for tomorrow night’s game against Golden State. Nonetheless, Houston’s really looking for improvement coming out of halftime in this game. Hopefully, the altitude doesn’t play an overwhelming factor on the squad’s pace of play. The Rockets are best when they play fast and under control. Houston has to be prepared for a harsher playing environment, as the altitude hits all players differently. It’s the Rockets’ first afternoon tip of the season… maybe an earlier start will give the squad some needed luck in Denver tonight.
Ball Arena: Denver, Colorado
Jersey Colors:
Houston Rockets (1-7): White
Denver Nuggets (4-4): Navy “City Edition”
TV: 4 PM CT – AT&T Sportsnet SW