Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
The Houston Rockets kicked back into action Thursday night against the Los Angeles Lakers following an extended All-Star break for everyone not named James Harden. The Rockets shook off a sloppy start to the contest to pull away with as much as a 19 point lead late in the third. Fueled by LeBron James, however, the Lakers would ignite a furious rally, ultimately defeating the Rockets 111-106. Houston is now 33-25, first in the Southwest Division by one half of a game, and fifth in the Western Conference.
Bad Sign
Blowing a 19-point lead at the end of a game is a terrible way to start a playoff push following the All-Star break. Perpetuating a losing streak, however, is even worse. This marks their third loss out of their last four, with their only win coming against a sub .500 Dallas Mavericks team. Their previous loss was dealt by a sub .500 Timberwolves squad, and a week before that we watched yet another meltdown where the Rockets blew a 26-point lead at home against the Thunder. Clint Capela's return to the center position should stabilize things in time, but the Rockets are beginning to look more like a first-round playoff exit candidate than an actual contender.
Good Sign
In spite of the loss, the Rockets' box score became noticeable for the first time in ages. With Clint Capela returning to action and Chris Paul back in rhythm, Harden wasn't leaned on to produce to the degree he has been asked over the past two months. Paul relieved him with a 23 point, 10 rebound, 9 assist performance, while Capela added 12 points and 11 rebounds in his return. In addition, both players contributed over 30 minutes in the contest. Harden was dreadful from three (2-10), but ended up 11-24 overall from the field to finish with 30 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. The effort extended Harden's streak of consecutive 30+ point scoring performances to 32 straight, placing him in sole position of second place behind Wilt Chamberlain's legendary 65.
The catch up game
Houston will have little time to recover from the disappointing loss before they take on the defending champs Saturday night. Based off recent history, the odds don't look too great for the Rockets against the Warriors, even if they have yet to lose to them this season. The Warriors are healthy, angry, and this time they'll be throwing DeMarcus Cousins at Houston. Once they get past Saturday, the schedule eases up considerably with contests against Atlanta, Charlotte, and Miami. Sporting a combined opponent winning percentage of 42 percent, it's not out of the realm of possibility to assume that the Rockets should be able to gain some of the ground they've lost over the past two weeks
Rockets player of the game
Chris Paul: 23 points, 9 assists, 10 rebounds
Lakers player of the game
LeBron James: 26 points, 6 assists, 11 rebounds
Up next
The Rockets stay on the road to face the Golden State Warriors Saturday night at 7:30 pm.
The Houston Texans addressed their most glaring needs by selecting offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery and a pair of Iowa State receivers in the NFL draft.
“The idea was to try to add good players, good people that are young, tough, hungry, that want to win, that put the team first,” general manager Nick Caserio said. “These picks exemplify that.”
The Texans got players that could help them quickly despite not picking in the first round for a second straight season. They didn’t have a first-round pick last year because of trades, including the one to move up and get defensive end Will Anderson with the third overall pick in the 2023 draft.
This season they shipped the 25th overall pick to the Giants on Thursday in exchange for several picks.
Their first selection in this draft was receiver Jayden Higgins, who was taken with the second pick of the second round. They added Ersery later in the second round with the 48th overall selection and picked up Higgins’ teammate Jaylin Noel in the third round.
Ersery could be Houston’s left tackle of the future after the offseason trade of five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil. Ersery started 38 games at left tackle over three seasons at Minnesota where he was a third-team All-American last season.
He comes to Houston to help shore up a line that allowed C.J. Stroud to be sacked 52 times last season, which was the second most in the NFL.
The Texans added veteran tackle Cam Robinson this offseason and Ersery will compete with him to protect Stroud’s blind side as the Texans attempt to reach the playoffs for a third straight season under coach DeMeco Ryans.
The 6-foot-6, 331-pound Ersery, who was the Big Ten’s Offensive Lineman of the Year last season, can’t wait to play with Stroud.
“C.J. Stroud is a baller,” Ersery said. “I’m so honored to be a guy to help out and come in and help protect him. I’m just super stoked and I know I’m going to a great organization.”
Cyclones teammates
Higgins and Noel join the Texans to add more depth at receiver to complement star Nico Collins with Tank Dell recovering from a serious knee injury and Stefon Diggs gone to the Patriots.
Higgins, who has been compared to Collins, had 87 receptions for 1,183 yards and nine touchdowns last season for the Cyclones and Noel added 80 catches for 1,194 yards and eight scores.
After Higgins was drafted, Noel never imagined he’d be heading to Houston, too. He shared on social media a fortune he received from a Chinese restaurant that read: “Look forward to an unplanned reunion with an out-of-touch friend.”
Noel later shared his feelings about joining Higgins on the roster.
“I was surprised,” Noel said. “But they’ve seen that 1-2 punch all year. They’re going to be very happy with those selections for sure.”
Caserio said a talk with Iowa State coach Matt Campbell on Friday helped him make his final decisions on the receivers.
“He was effusive in his… belief and praise of both Higgins and Noel,” Caserio said.
The Texans now have three receivers from Iowa State on their roster after drafting Xavier Hutchinson in the sixth round in 2023.
Overcoming obstacles
Ersery and his four siblings were raised by a single mother and experienced homelessness when he was a child despite her working multiple jobs. He is thrilled to have put those struggles behind him as he embarks on his next chapter.
“I’ve got that hardworking mentality from her,” he said. “So, growing up times were tough but now I’ve got my foot in the door and I look forward to trying to change some things around.”
Caserio loves guys with work ethic like Ersery’s and said that’s one reason why they believe he’ll fit in with the Texans.
“If you come in and put your head down and work and just get better, take advantage of your opportunities, you’re going to have a shot to have success and do a lot of good things for the organization,” he said.
What’s in a name?
Along with Noel, the Texans added another Jaylin in this draft with they picked USC cornerback Jaylin Smith in the third round.
“We got Jaylins, and we got all these guys around. It’s going to be hard to keep them straight,” Caserio joked on Friday after they picked Smith.
Then on Saturday, the Texans added another player with the same name, albeit with a different spelling, when they took Penn State safety Jaylen Reed in the sixth round.
That gives them four players with the same name and three different spellings as the three rookies join starting safety Jalen Pitre on the team.
Doubling up
Along with drafting two players from Iowa State, the Texans also added a pair of players from Southern California when they picked running back Woody Marks in the fourth round after drafting Smith in the third.
Marks ran for a career-high 1,133 yards with nine touchdowns for the Trojans last season after transferring from Mississippi State.
Be sure to watch the video below as NFL.com Draft Analyst Lance Zierlein shares his thoughts on all the Texans' picks!