Game 14: Houston Rockets Vs. New York Knicks Preview
After being on top of the world for a night, the Houston Rockets fell back to Earth with another devastating loss and piss-poor shooting performance that’d make “Pistol Pete” Maravich roll over in his grave.
This team just cannot put the ball into the hoop if their life depended on it and it’s becoming even more tough to watch this team in such a slide.
The firing of Kevin McHale may not help this team find its way but I’m giving J.B. Bickerstaff enough time to get his feet wet as he takes the reins for this team.
But at least for the first time this season, the Rockets held an opponent to under 100 points — 96 last night — and were the last team in the NBA to do so.
That’s not a feat that I’d be proud of though.
But anyway, the Rockets face the 7-6 New York Knicks, who have a fire lit up under the rears and have won three-straight as a result.
They almost blew a 16-point lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder last night but held on to a 93-90 win.
Over their win streak, they’ve held opponents to an average of 90.3 PPG and 42 percent shooting which goes to credit the excellent job that they’ve been doing so far.
It has been 11 years since the Knicks have won in Houston and I certainly feel that have a good chance of snapping that streak tonight with the way the Rockets have been playing as of late.
We’ll have to see which Rockets team shows up tonight but I’m afraid we’re all likely are going to be in for some disappointment.
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So who’s leading the charge for the Knicks?
Not surprisingly, Carmelo Anthony leads the Knicks in scoring (23.2 PPG) and in assists (3.5 APG). Rookie phenom Kristaps Porzingis is the team’s top board-getter (8.4 RPG), Langston Galloway in steals (1.20 SPG) and Robin Lopez in blocks (1.30 BPG).
Let’s talk about what the Knicks do well.
They take care of the basketball. The Knicks are 6th in the league in turnover ratio with just a measly 12.8 percent of their total possessions ending in a turnover.
They attack the boards for the second chance. The Knicks are 6th in the league in offensive rebound rate (26.7).
Injuries:
Terrence Jones injured his left hand earlier this week — he did try to contribute, adding 10 points and four rebounds in 28 minutes of action against the Grizzlies. He status continues to be day-to-day.
Patrick Beverley is out of his walking boot but there’s no timetable for his return, he’s OUT indefinitely at this moment.
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Sam Dekker had back surgery Friday and is expected to miss about three months.
Lou Amundson was injured earlier this week with a laceration to his scalp. He has been ruled as day-to-day since.
Three Things to Watch:
- Battle of the Front Court — Terrence Jones/Marcus Thornton vs. Carmelo Anthony and Trevor Ariza vs. Porzingis
- James Harden vs. Arron Afflalo
- Will the defense show some improvement?
Next: Red Nation Hoops Podcast: Episode 8
Prediction:
100-95 in a Rockets’ loss.
The Rockets hit the road to take on the Knicks at Toyota Center.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST.
The game will be televised on ROOT Sports Southwest and broadcast on SportsTalk 790 AM (KBME) and La Ranchera 850 AM (KEYH) in Spanish.
Go Rockets!