ROCKETS BEAT THUNDER, 102-89

Christian Wood leads Rockets past Thunder securing 3rd straight win

Christian Wood leads Rockets past Thunder securing 3rd straight win
Rockets win again! Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images.

The Houston Rockets have played incredible in the last three games. Although it’s only a three-game winning streak, the Rockets are making huge adjustments with their spacing and composure. Oklahoma City Thunder coach, Mark Daigneault, says the Rockets are playing with a certain “swag.”

“They are swagging out right now offensively,” said Daigneault. “The last time we played this team they were in the midst of a long losing streak and you could feel that in the game. They have beaten two quality opponents and shot the ball well.”

Christian Wood and Kevin Porter Jr. have led the Rockets with a sense of urgency. Both have dominated at their position. Coach Silas, who was on a suspected hot seat, moved Wood to the center position and took Daniel Theis out of the rotation, which seems to be working. Wood is spacing the floor better in pick-and-roll, transition, and from the perimeter for contested and open shots. Defensively, Wood has been a problem for other teams. In three games, Wood is averaging 24.3 points, 15.7 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per contest. He has been a busy man for the Rockets. As I dive deeper into the analytics, Wood’s has 123.1 offensive and 103.2 defensive rating too.

Hopefully, Wood maintains his great play, as the Rockets face off against three more easier opponents, including the Thunder again before they play the Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets. Wood is becoming more dominant and confident on the court. His aggression has allowed him to attack the rim off the dribble and create his own shot. Wood is even shooting the three-ball better at 58.3 percent off 4.0 attempts per contest the last three games. He made a huge shot versus the Charlotte Hornets Saturday night.

"He’s playing with a lot more energy than he was prior, and that is a majority of it,” Silas said. “He’s just trying really hard right now, but being able to roll to the rim consistently time after time..."

Wood is showing his versatility on defense, which is guarding 1-5 on the court. Watching him guard players off switches is impressive after he struggled last season. He has protected the rim well too, as that can worry opposing coaches inside the paint. Wood put in some extra time on his footwork and quickness during the offseason, and it’s paying off for the Rockets defensively. He is starting to look like the main anchor on defense.

Porter has taken more command of the offense, as Silas looks pleased. He is calling the offensive sets instead of looking for Silas for the next play. Porter is seeing the court better instead of turning the ball over. He had to sit a few games due to a minor injury but was able to observe while out.

“Just be me. I’ve been trying to be something I’m not,” Porter said. “After that injury, I was able to observe and I came back out and played my game.”

Although he is averaging 4.7 per turnovers per contest, Porter is becoming a better point guard by putting his teammates in position to score. Porter is understanding when to score and pass, which isn’t an easy task at point guard. He is starting to look more aggressive on offense because of the ability to get to the free throw line or attacking the basket. In the last three games, Porter is averaging 16.0 points, 10.7 assists, and 8 rebounds per contest. Versus the Thunder, Porter recorded his first triple-double, which the ending of getting his last rebound was hilarious. Josh Christopher yelled ‘GET THE BALL, GET THE BALL’, as the crowd cheered for Porter. Porter has posted a 120.5 offensive rating the last three games.

Porter is becoming a better on ball defender, as he clamped LaMelo Ball on the last possession in OT Saturday night. He even intercepted the pass on a pick-and-roll action ran by the Thunder. Porter is defending all the elements on defense. Porter is averaging 1.7 steals per game while playing defense. No room is given when Porter plays on-ball defense. Porter has a 103.3 defensive rating, which makes sense because of the tenacity shown.

Another bright spot shown on the Rockets offense is Garrison Mathews. He was picked up on waivers from the Washington Wizards before the season started. The Rockets assigned him to the Rio Grande Vipers before calling him up to play. So far, Mathews has looked like a professional sniper for the Rockets. He is a reliable kick-out shooter with a green light to shoot a highly contested shot. He doesn’t need much space to take a shot anywhere on the court and is a very patient shooter. Mathews is fixing the Rockets problems when it comes to needed outside shooting along with Armoni Brooks.

While starting for the Rockets and getting 32.7 minutes within this three-game winning streak, Mathews is averaging 17.0 points per game and shooting the three-ball at 50 percent and has a 77.1 true shooting and 76.7 effective field goal percentage. He deserves to be a starter because he defends, cuts to the basket, and drives. His versatility is huge for the Rockets. Mathews continues to blossom and makes shooting look effortless, as he is an incredible catch-and-shoot weapon at 58.3 percent the last three games.

The Rockets should go on a seven-game winning streak along with the three games they won already. When Jalen Green comes back, they should become more dangerous because of the rhythm that is being built with the team.

Up next: The Rockets face the Thunder again on Wednesday night.

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The Astros have their work cut out for them. Composite Getty Image.

Through 20 games, the Houston Astros have managed just six wins and are in last place in the AL West.

Their pitching staff trails only Colorado with a 5.24 ERA and big-money new closer Josh Hader has given up the same number of earned runs in 10 games as he did in 61 last year.

Despite this, these veteran Astros, who have reached the AL Championship Series seven consecutive times, have no doubt they’ll turn things around.

“If there’s a team that can do it, it’s this team,” shortstop Jeremy Peña said.

First-year manager Joe Espada, who was hired in January to replace the retired Dusty Baker, discussed his team’s early struggles.

“It’s not ideal,” he said. “It’s not what we expected, to come out of the shoot playing this type of baseball. But you know what, this is where we’re at and we’ve got to pick it up and play better. That’s just the bottom line.”

Many of Houston’s problems have stemmed from a poor performance by a rotation that has been decimated by injuries. Ace Justin Verlander and fellow starter José Urquidy haven’t pitched this season because of injuries and lefty Framber Valdez made just two starts before landing on the injured list with a sore elbow.

Ronel Blanco, who threw a no-hitter in his season debut April 1, has pitched well and is 2-0 with a 0.86 ERA in three starts this season. Cristian Javier is also off to a good start, going 2-0 with a 1.54 ERA in four starts, but the team has won just two games not started by those two pitchers.

However, Espada wouldn’t blame the rotation for Houston’s current position.

“It’s been a little bit of a roller coaster how we've played overall,” he said. “One day we get good starting pitching, some days we don’t. The middle relief has been better and sometimes it hasn’t been. So, we’ve just got to put it all together and then play more as a team. And once we start doing that, we’ll be in good shape.”

The good news for the Astros is that Verlander will make his season debut Friday night when they open a series at Washington and Valdez should return soon after him.

“Framber and Justin have been a great part of our success in the last few years,” second baseman Jose Altuve said. “So, it’s always good to have those two guys back helping the team. We trust them and I think it’s going to be good.”

Hader signed a five-year, $95 million contract this offseason to give the Astros a shutdown 7-8-9 combination at the back end of their bullpen with Bryan Abreu and Ryan Pressly. But the five-time All-Star is off to a bumpy start.

He allowed four runs in the ninth inning of a 6-1 loss to the Braves on Monday night and has yielded eight earned runs this season after giving up the same number in 56 1/3 innings for San Diego last year.

He was much better Wednesday when he struck out the side in the ninth before the Astros fell to Atlanta in 10 innings for their third straight loss.

Houston’s offense, led by Altuve, Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker, ranks third in the majors with a .268 batting average and is tied for third with 24 homers this season. But the Astros have struggled with runners in scoring position and often failed to get a big hit in close games.

While many of Houston’s hitters have thrived this season, one notable exception is first baseman José Abreu. The 37-year-old, who is in the second year of a three-year, $58.5 million contract, is hitting 0.78 with just one extra-base hit in 16 games, raising questions about why he remains in the lineup every day.

To make matters worse, his error on a routine ground ball in the eighth inning Wednesday helped the Braves tie the game before they won in extra innings.

Espada brushed off criticism of Abreu and said he knows the 2020 AL MVP can break out of his early slump.

“Because (of) history,” Espada said. “The back of his baseball card. He can do it.”

Though things haven’t gone well for the Astros so far, everyone insists there’s no panic in this team which won its second World Series in 2022.

Altuve added that he doesn’t have to say anything to his teammates during this tough time.

“I think they’ve played enough baseball to know how to control themselves and how to come back to the plan we have, which is winning games,” he said.

The clubhouse was quiet and somber Wednesday after the Astros suffered their third series sweep of the season and second at home. While not panicking about the slow start, this team, which has won at least 90 games in each of the last three seasons, is certainly not happy with its record.

“We need to do everything better,” third baseman Alex Bregman said. “I feel like we’re in a lot of games, but we just haven’t found a way to win them. And good teams find a way to win games. So we need to find a way to win games.”

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