Houston Rockets Playoff Primer: How Far Can James Harden Take Them?
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The Houston Rockets can outscore anyone in the entire league on any given night. Their entire offense is a wild card for any matchup they come across. This makes their ceiling higher than any other team this post season.
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Houston averages 40 three-pointers chucked up every single game. That’s 3,250 threes shot over the course of the season which is an NBA record. They’re not just shooting them to shoot, either. They make them. They drain 14.3 threes a game, which is equal to 1,162 in a season. Oh yeah that too, is the most in NBA history.
They’re shooting almost 36 percent as a team from behind the arc and the majority of their roster are true marksmen. Four of Houston’s starting five is Harden at point (34%), Patrick Beverly at SG (38%), Trevor Ariza (34%), and Ryan Anderson (40.4%). The soon to be 6th man of the year and reigning three-point champion Eric Gordon is shooting 37 percent from three and his partner in crime off the bench Lou Will is just under 33 percent.
It is a nightmare trying to guard these flamethrowers in the Rockets spread high pick and roll offense. Once Harden comes off the screen, the defense is in scramble mode. They’re rotating over trying to guard two people with one defender on the perimeter. Do you guard the perimeter shooters and allow Harden to cruise right down the lane? Do you try to guard the lob after the high pick and roll? Or do you leave open shooters on the best three-point shooting team the league has ever seen? This is the true definition of pick your poison offense.