How The Houston Rockets Proved Me Wrong

ByZack Walker|May 1, 2015, 11:15 AM EDT

For the second time in 18 years, the Houston Rockets have advanced to round two of the playoffs.

Let me clear a few things up before I dive into this. First off, I am not a Rockets fan. I grew up in San Antonio, so I am indeed a Spurs fan. (Editors note: Had I known this we would have never allowed him to write for us )

Don’t get your panties all tied in a wad.

I write for this site because I live for the Texans and have been an Astros fan ever since my father took me to Minute Maid for my first baseball game when I was seven. I’m a nice blend of H-Town and Essay. We don’t call it Essay, I just wanted to make it sound somewhat cooler.

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I tend to not write about the Rockets, but I felt like this needed to be said. So on behalf of myself and almost half of the sports media world, I apologize Rockets fans. Your team has proven me wrong.

I figured the Rockets would continue the trend that they have (for the most part) fallen into over the past two decades. I thoughtDirk Nowitzkiwould have one last monster series, lead his team to the next round, and the Rockets would underachieve once again. That was not the case.

The Rockets handled their business for the entire series. Yes, the Mavs managed to snag one. But for the most part, they got rocked.Dwight HowardandJosh Smith’s alley-oops were just degrading, the bench came through, andJames Hardenplayed great.

The key to the Rockets’ success, of course, was Howard’s reemergence as Dwight Howard. He ended up averaging 16.6 points, 13.8 rebounds, 3 blocks, and with the exception of Game 1, played a high volume of minutes throughout the series. I think it’s safe to say that knee is much better.

I did not see Howard’s dominance coming. I thought he would play well, but not at the level he once was at. He has returned to that level. With (potential) match-ups of guys likeTim Duncan,Andrew Bogut, andMarc Gasolpossibly on the horizon, Howard is the key for Houston’s survival. They don’t need him to put up big numbers; they’ve got Harden for that. They need his interior defense and rebounding abilities.

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