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Houston Rockets: Will The Team Sustain Their Defense?

By Brian K. Patterson

Feb 19, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Houston Rockets players celebrate against the Phoenix Suns during the second half at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The Rockets won 116-100. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 19, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Houston Rockets players celebrate against the Phoenix Suns during the second half at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The Rockets won 116-100. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports /
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Let me tell you something Houston Rockets fans.

What I saw was better basketball being played by the Rockets Friday night against the Phoenix Suns.

Over the All-Star Break, they really knuckled down and concentrated about what is causing this team to overachieve.

We all knew all along what was the problem.

They were playing terrible defense!

It seemed as if the Rockets were in a state of denial as if everything was going ho-hum; but no, all wasn’t well for our beloved basketball team.

It had started to concern because it spread like a cancerous tumor across the locker room and it certainly appeared that they weren’t going to do anything about it.

I know, I know, this was against the Suns — they’re a terrible team — but I saw this team play differently than I had ever seen this season.

We just have accept that we have to take their efforts in progress one game at a time.

I was in awe of the commitment these guys had Friday night.

They were all in-sync — communicating with each other in regard to who should be guarding who and they did not relent throughout the game.

The Suns did take a brief lead in the first half after a 7-0 run but the Rockets pounced and were able to take control of the game.

They didn’t look back after that.

You remember the last time the Rockets faced the Suns Feb. 4?

They were on pins and needles the whole game and they were barely able to eke out a win over their opponent 111-105.

Through three quarters, the Rockets had held the Suns to 65 points!

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They called of the dogs in 4th quarter and the Suns were able to score more but, by then, the Rockets easily had the game in hand.

They cruised to a 116-100 win.

That’s what I’m talking about, sticking it to teams that they’re supposed to beat and not letting up!

Throughout the season, I had wondered every time we faced a weaker opponent would we not take them seriously.

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I still recall where we almost lost to the Philadephia 76ers while they were breaking all-time records for futility and we barely beat them 116-114.

Nonetheless, I think the Rockets have a new fire in their eyes and I think we’re going to see a better effort out of them down this final stretch of 26 games.

So what if James Harden tires?

If his scoring drops a bit, it may not matter as long as we score enough points to win the game.

Bar none — he needs to be playing defense because he is the leader of this team and they will go as he goes.

Look at the teams we had when Jeff Van Gundy was our coach — we never set the world on fire with our offense but it was our defensive effort that caused us to win a lot of games, with regular visits to the postseason!

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We can do that and although a potent offense is fun to watch, I’d be more enthralled about a strong affinity to play defense.

We’ll have to see.

Go Rockets.

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