PUTTING UP POINTS

Despite the loss of Chris Paul, the Rockets are getting back to their offensive roots

Despite the loss of Chris Paul, the Rockets are getting back to their offensive roots
Houston Rockets/Facebook

James Harden is on a roll.


When the Houston Rockets hired Mike D'Antoni back in 2016, they were criticized for bringing in an offensive-minded coach after they were so porous on defense the year before (ranked 21st). The criticism made a lot of sense; why hire an offensive visionary like D'Antoni when you were already the seventh best offense in the league a year ago?

"I think a lot of times when organizations make coaching changes they tend to go out and try and hire everything they think the last guy wasn't. We want to make a smooth transition," Daryl Morey explained.

And in hindsight, Morey's explanation made a lot of sense. With James Harden, the Rockets have always been an elite offensive team (top ten every year but 2014-15). By playing up to their strengths and hiring D'Antoni to elevate them, the Rockets assured themselves their best chance at success. There is a lot to be said for knowing what you are good at and sticking to your core principles as an organization when times get rough.

And that is precisely what's happening with Houston right now. After a dreadful start to the season, the Houston Rockets have won 12 of their last 13 games. While they've made other tweaks, what's really shined for them in this run is their offense. Houston has the second best offensive rating in the league over their past 13 games and is now up to the 3rd best offensive rating for the season.

Nobody has personified this stretch better than reigning MVP James Harden:

Harden is putting up scoring and usage numbers that only the likes of Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan have seen. He's having to carry a huge burden with both Chris Paul and Eric Gordon missing significant time. While it may not be sustainable, Houston has certainly needed every drop of his production and it has skyrocketed Harden to the top of the MVP discussion yet again:

So, what's changed for Houston? Mike D'Antoni put it best a couple days ago - they're making shots.

Over the last 13 games, the Rockets are shooting 37.1% from 3-PT range which is good for fifth in the NBA in that stretch. Prior to that, Houston was shooting 33.7% from 3-PT range - good for 24th in the league.

Aside from James Harden becoming a human blowtorch in this stretch (41.4% from 3), guys like Austin Rivers (38.7% from 3), Danuel House Jr. (41.7% from 3), and Gerald Green (41.0% from 3) have all stepped up big for Houston.

Considering the hamstring injury to Chris Paul, Austin Rivers has been a godsend for Houston. They were in desperate need of a secondary creator and Rivers provided just that.

The Rockets are 7.1 points per 100 possessions better on offense when Austin Rivers is on the floor. His ability to break down defenders off the dribble and drive to the rim and has opened up a lot for Houston as previously only Harden could do that.

In addition to being a good penetrator, he is also shooting extremely well off of catch and shoot opportunities (56.3% from 3).

An offense like Houston's thrives off of having a well-spaced floor and Rivers is just good enough of a shooter (35.2% from 3 for his career) to demand attention.

Another nice addition for Houston has been two-way contract to add Danuel House Jr. who is shooting well in his own right (36.6% from 3 - up from 25.9% last season). On top of being energetic and long, House has adapted nicely to Houston's offense and is shooting 3-pointers with the confidence of a J.J. Redick. House is attempting 5.7 threes per 36 minutes. As a point of comparison, C.J. McCollum of the Portland Trailblazers is attempting 6.1 per 36 minutes.However, possibly the biggest reason outside of James Harden for Houston's emergence is Clint Capela's play.

Clint Capela (last 13 games):

16.4 PPG / 14.6 RPG / 1.5 BPG / 0.8 SPG on 61.7% True Shooting

Capela has taken his game to another level in this stretch. A huge reason for this is the increased workload Mike D'Antoni has given to him. Although Nene Hilario has returned at backup center, Capela is being asked to play more minutes than he's ever had to in career. In prior years, this had been a problem for him, but he seems to have welcomed the additional burden.

Clint Capela minutes per game:

2014 - 7:28

2015 - 19:06

2016 - 23:52

2017 - 27:29

2018 - 34:09

In the background of all that, the Rockets have made some significant tweaks to their defensive scheme. Last season, Houston switched every screen on defense positions 1 through 5 in an attempt to gear up for the Warriors. They attempted to do the same thing this year, but quickly realized they were getting out-rebounded far too much to continue.

Houston made the subtle change of dropping their bigs back to the basket and switching only on a "have to" basis.

Prior to the switch, the Rockets were 29th in defensive rebounding percentage (68.5%). Since the change, the Rockets have made a noticeable improvement to 19th in the NBA (71.9%). This has made them a passable defense again (18th in the last 13 games). While that may not be where they want to end up, it's good enough to get them back on the right track for now.

It's possible they continue to tweak their scheme and add better defensive personnel through the buyout market or trade deadline but what's really important is that Houston has gotten back to becoming a special offensive team again. Morey and D'Antoni set out to create a strong offensive identity for the Rockets two years ago and it was important that they get back to this point before trying to get back to last year's level of excellence.

James Harden is playing like an MVP again and it'll be easier to sort the rest of their defensive issues out now that they've re-discovered what's made them impossible to beat these past couple seasons.

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DeMeco Ryans is upfront about the Texans' draft needs. Composite Getty Image.

After the beating C.J. Stroud took in Houston’s divisional playoff loss to Kansas City it was clear the team’s top offseason priority should be upgrading its offensive line.

Instead, the Texans traded five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil and 2022 first-round pick left guard Kenyon Green and released right guard Shaq Mason.

They added tackle Cam Robinson and guards Ed Ingram and Laken Tomlinson, but as the NFL draft approaches their porous offensive line remains the most glaring weakness of the team.

Though the Texans won’t say that they plan to use their first-round pick (No. 25) on an offensive lineman, they’ve said plenty about the need to better protect Stroud this upcoming season. Stroud led Houston to its second straight AFC South title last season despite being sacked 52 times, which was the second most in the NFL.

“Getting better protection for C.J. is definitely a main point of emphasis for us,” coach DeMeco Ryans said. “We know when C.J. is protected, he has a clean pocket, he’s a pretty good quarterback. ... He’s capable of making any throw on the football field. But it’s just a matter of protecting him and giving him that comfort when he’s in the pocket.”

General manager Nick Caserio said he doesn’t believe they have to draft an offensive lineman next week.

“We feel like we have to add good football players to our football team,” he said. “That’s what we’re focused on. Whatever those positions entail, that’s what’s going to work. That’s how we’re going to approach it and handle it.”

Houston’s pick in the first round is one of seven selections it has in this year’s draft. The Texans return to the first round this season after not having a pick in the opening round last season because of trades, including the one to move up to get defensive end Will Anderson with the third overall pick in the 2023 draft.

Though the offensive line has several holes, Houston’s top priority should be drafting the left tackle of the future.

Robinson could protect Stroud’s blind side this season to give whichever player they draft a season to develop and learn behind him.

A couple of players who could be available when the Texans pick are Kelvin Banks from Texas and Oregon’s Josh Conerly. Banks was a three-year starter for the Longhorns and won the Outland Trophy as the nation’s best interior lineman last season. Conerly started 28 games at left tackle in the past two seasons for the Ducks and was a finalist for the Joe Moore Award given to the nation’s best offensive lineman.

Pick ’em

The Texans have two picks in the third round and two in the seventh this year after receiving the 79th and 236th overall picks from the Commanders as part of the trade for Tunsil.

Needs

Along with the offensive line, the Texans could use some help at receiver. Nico Collins, who has had consecutive 1,000-yard seasons, has developed into an elite option. But the Texans need a solid second option after they moved on from Stefon Diggs after one disappointing season that ended in a season-ending injury in Week 8.

They traded for Christian Kirk, but he’s coming off a tough season where he had a career-low 379 yards before breaking his collarbone in October. The Texans also don’t know when they’ll get Tank Dell back, with the receiver still recovering from a serious knee injury he sustained in December.

Don’t need

The Texans are set at running back after signing Joe Mixon before last season and having a reliable backup in Dameon Pierce.

Draft success

While Caserio has added some stars to the team with first-round draft picks including Stroud, Anderson and cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., he’s also had a knack for finding starters beyond the first round since joining the Texans.

Caserio nabbed Collins in the third round in his first draft with Houston in 2021 and added safety Jalen Pitre in the second round in 2022. He also found starting linebackers Christian Harris in the third in 2022 and Henry To’oTo’o in the fifth in 2023.

Last year he drafted cornerback Kamari Lassiter in the second round and safety Calen Bullock in the third. In their rookie seasons, Lassiter started 14 games while Bullock started 13.

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