J-Speaks: Rockets Continue to Soar Thanks to the Historic Offensive Run by The Reigning Kia MVP

The Houston Rockets last season’s Western Conference runner-up from last spring opened this season not on the best of footing. Their prized acquisition from this summer was basically handed his walking papers in the early part. Their defense was basically non-existent. They lost their lead guard to injury not too long ago and there was even a thought that they would not even make the postseason this spring in the very deep West. That has all changed thanks to the amazing offensive hot streak of their best player and reigning Kia MVP and he made the team that took them down one game shy of reaching the NBA Finals last year his latest victim.

Behind the 44 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds of reigning 2016-17 Kia MVP of the NBA James Harden, who was 13 for 32 from the field overall, including 10 for 23 from three-point range, the Houston Rockets (22-15) took down the back-to-back defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors (25-14) in their own house 135-134 in overtime in front of a late-night national television audience on Thursday night.

Harden capped off his stellar evening by hitting the eventual game-winning three-pointer, his 10^th of the night right in the eyes of former Defensive Player of the Year Draymond Green and fellow perennial All-Star Klay Thompson with 01.0 second left.

“Every time you ask me a question like that, I will tell you the work,” Harden, who authored his fifth triple-double on the season to NBA on TNT’s sideline reporter Ros Gold-Onwude about hitting what she described when she asked Harden about taking and making the most well defended, toughest and most clutch shot as you could possibly take.

“Yesterday I was in the same spot shooting the same shots. So, I had the confidence that it was going to go in. Even the ones I missed they felt good.”

The Warriors other perennial All-Star and 2014 Kia MVP Kevin Durant, who finished with 26 points on the night missed the game-winning triple as the Rockets improved to 2-0 versus the team that denied them their ticket to the NBA Finals a season ago.

“It don’t matter. It don’t matter,” Harden said of knocking down the game-winning triple with multiple defenders around him. “I knew my team needed me to come up (big). Whether it was to make a shot or make a play, and we did that.”

Harden, a six-time All-Star, who was 13 for 32 from the field, including10 for 23 from three-point range on the evening not only notched his fifth triple-double of the season, it was his third in the Rockets last 12 games, which they have won 11 of them, including six in a row. It was his 11^th straight contest scoring at least 30 points and his fifth consecutive game with at least 40 points, an NBA record. Harden also authored his ninth straight game of producing 35-plus points and five-plus assists, continuing an NBA record that was once held by Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson. If that was not enough, Harden set another NBA record with his eighth game in succession with at least five three-pointers made.

To put into further context the kind of dynamic scoring streak Harden is on, only future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant and Hall of Famer, six-time NBA champion with the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s and current owner of the Charlotte Hornets Michael Jordan have had longer streaks of scoring 35 points or more with 13 and 10 respectably. Harden recently surpassed Jordan who also did it seven straight games and former Rocket Carmelo Anthony who did it six straight once. He tied the mark of nine straight once set by current Los Angeles Laker in four-time Kia MVP LeBron James.

Harden’s performance drew praise from Hall of Famer and TNT studio analyst Charles Barkley, who said on “Inside the NBA” following the Rockets versus Warriors contest, “James Harden, he is on fire.”

He added, “He is the most unguardable thing in this era. What he’s doing is incredible.”

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, whose squad lost at the Rockets in the first meeting 107-86, when Harden had a meager 27 points, going just 8 for 23 from the field, including 4 for 14 from three-point range said after the loss to the media, “He’s a master of the isolation and step back three, and drawing fouls.”

He added, “I thought we did a real good job of keeping him off the (foul) line for the most part…He made an impossible shot at the end and just an incredible performance.”

As good as Harden was in terms of his scoring, his playmaking is a big reason a couple of his teammates have also played at the top of their game as the Rockets have gotten out of the hole, they dug themselves in the early part of this season.

Starting center Clint Capela had his eighth double-double in the last 12 games with 29 points and 23 rebounds, his third game of 20-plus boards in this run.

Recent Rockets addition Austin Rivers scored 18 points going 4 for 9 from three-point range Houston, TX native Danuel House, Jr. scored 17 hitting three triples and reserve Gerald Green contributed 16 points off the bench in 30 minutes as the Rockets improved to 11-2 when he reaches double figures recently.

Those offensive outputs are how the Warriors not only overcame a 20-point deficit at one point in the contest but neutralized the 35-point performance on 14 for 27 shooting by two-time MVP Stephen Curry; the aforementioned 26 points of Durant and the 26 points of Thompson, who was 11 for 20 from the field, including 4 for 8 from three-point range.

The Warriors lost for just the fifth time in 22 chances with their All-Star quartet of Curry, Durant, Thompson, and Green in the lineup this season. 

The play of House, Jr., Green, Capela and Rivers, who was claimed off waivers by the Phoenix Suns bought out his contract after he was acquired in the middle of December 2018 have really stepped up in the absence of nine-time All-Star lead guard Chris Paul, who sustained a Grade-2 left hamstring strain late in the first half of the Rockets 101-99 loss at the Miami Heat (19-18) back on Dec. 20, 2018 on TNT. They were also without sharp shooter Eric Gordon, who was shelved for a second straight game due to a bruised right knee. The Rockets did get forward James Ennis III back from a 10-game absence due to a strained right hamstring. He scored three points in eight minutes off the bench.

Prior to the Rockets recent six-game winning, they were 0-5 without Paul in the lineup and dating back to last year, they had lost nine straight without their floor general.  

“We finally getting it. Even some of our young guys played well,” Harden said to Gold-Onwude on the performance of his teammates. “Danuel House, Jr. came up big in tonight’s game. Austin played well. Great team effort tonight.”

After a tough 107-104 loss at the Dallas Mavericks (18-20) on Dec. 8, 2018, the Rockets fell to 11-14 and were out of the playoff picture. Their aforementioned 11-1 mark in their last 12 games, which includes six straight victories has vaulted them into the No. 4 spot in the rugged West, just two games on the loss side behind the Warriors and 3.5 games behind the current No. 1 Seeded Denver Nuggets (25-11).

They have dug themselves out of a huge hole and will be getting Paul and Gordon back soon. The hope is that they can provide an offensive spark that will take some of the scoring and playmaking load off of Harden’s shoulders, even though he has been masterful at carrying that heavy load.

It has not always worked out in the postseason as Harden the last two seasons has worn down. In Games 6 and 7 of the 2018 Western Conference Finals, Harden scored 32 points in the 32-point setback in Game 6 at the Warriors as well as in the nine-point loss in Game 7 but made just three of his 25 triples.

The sooner that Paul and Gordon can return, it will give Rockets’ head coach Mike D’Antoni more options to work with and hopefully lessen the previously mentioned offensive load that Harden has had to carry.

“We’re just more aggressive. More aggressive,” Harden said to Gold-Onwude. “We’re more healthy, obviously Chris and Eric is out, guys are getting it and we’re playing much better and it’s showing.”

“We got to keep going. We got a long way to go. It’s a good win for us. Continue to build and continue to keep our swag up.” 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 12/30/18 2 a.m. edition of NBATV’s “Gametime,” presented by Kia with Chris Miles, David Griffin, and Brendan Haywood;  1/3/19 10:30 p.m. “Houston Rockets versus Golden State Warriors,” of NBA on TNT, presented by State Farm with Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, and Ros Gold-Onwude; 1/4/19 1 a.m. edition of “Inside the NBA,” presented by Kia on TNT with Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley, and Shaquille O’Neal; www.nba.com/games/20190103/HOUGSW#/boxscore/matchup/recap; www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/3992/james-harden; www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/3102529/clint-capela; www.espn.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/hou; and www.espn.com/nba/standings.