Pelicans Blast Rockets, Embarrass Harden and Co. on Opening Night
Well at least that’s over with. And by that I mean the New Orleans Pelicans beat-down of the Houston Rockets on Opening Night in Toyota Center. They cruised to a 131-112 victory in a game that was never competitive. The final score actually makes it seem like the Rockets were within reach, but for most of the game it seemed as thought they trailed by 30. Harden came out like I feared he might, lazy, unfocused, his mind still on last season and the MVP award he was handed before the game from Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta. The Pelicans came out like gangbusters, intent on proving last year’s sweep was no fluke. Anthony Davis had a monster opening game in his quest to prove he belongs in among the NBA’s elite and should be one of the frontrunners for the MVP award this season. The Rockets knew what to expect from the Brow. One could even say they “contained” him. However, it was the other “bigs” they had no answer for, specifically Nikola Mirotic, who shot lights out from beyond the arc and finished with 30 points and 10 rebounds, and Julius Randle, who came off the bench to supply 25 points in 24 minutes to go along with 8 rebounds. The Rockets were manhandled on the glass, something the squad hopes to improve on, and quick, as the season moves along. Even though Harden finished 1 assist shy of a triple-double, his performance was underwhelming to say the least. He looked like he was still in offseason mode. The only real bright spots were P.J. Tucker, who was fantastic as usual on both ends of the floor, finishing with 19 points, but had little help from teammates on the defensive end. Eric Gordon did what he does and provided a spark off the bench, leading the team in scoring with 21 points. It was evident from the start that the Rockets communication on defense would be a major problem. The Pelicans screened and cut to the basket for open layups all night. Hopefully these are just growing pains that accompany teams as they adjust from one season to the next with new pieces, but the Rockets lost their most valuable defensive communicator besides PJ in Trevor Ariza. James Ennis looked hesitant, like he didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes. The same with Carmelo Anthony, who despite hitting one of his first shots, looked confused as to what his role on the team will be moving forward. I’m counting on CP3 as the team’s vocal leader to help Melo’s transition, but if Melo becomes a liability on defense like he was last night, he won’t be getting many minutes in crunch time. Hopefully this was just one of those games you forget about, and is not consistent with the rest of the season. The Rockets look to turn things around on Saturday, where the lights will be shining even brighter in LeBron James’ Lakers home debut.