Houston Rockets @ Los Angeles Lakers: Game 1: The Sneak Peek

It’s SHOWTIME Houston Rockets’ fans. Yes, I know that our beloved team is in Los Angeles but we’re far removed from the days of the “Showtime” Lakers as well as seeing Kobe Bryant as a fixture of our opponent tonight.

It’s SHOWTIME Houston Rockets‘ fans. Yes, I know that our beloved team is in Los Angeles but we’re far removed from the days of the “Showtime” Lakers as well as seeing Kobe Bryant as a fixture of our opponent tonight.

A new era begins tonight for both teams — the Houston Rockets will start to beginning life without Dwight Howard and with James Harden at the controls of this team with new coach Mike D’Antoni in tow.

The Lakers have already bid farewell to Bryant, one of the most talented players to transcend the game of basketball and the show must go on without him.

Our opponent has sent Byron Scott for the showers and has proudly ushered in Luke Walton as their head coach.

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The Houston Rockets should not have a difficult time to handle these guys tonight as they’re still a young team that may eventually find their stride but not against us.

Nonetheless, the Houston Rockets have to play this game tonight in front of national television on ESPN — the Worldwide Leader in Sports.

Until FOX Sports catches up with them but that’s neither here or there.

But all-in-all, this is D’Angelo Russell‘s team and despite the trust issues that have arisen from the whole debacle of letting a certain video clip slip out about Nick Young‘s infidelities, he is the leader of this team for now.

And he is definitely embracing that role with pride.

We’ll have to see how all of that pans out tonight against the Houston Rockets immensely-charged offense.

So who’s leading the charge for the Lakers?

D’Angelo Russell led the Lakers in scoring (17.8 PPG), assists (5.4 APG), steals (1.6 SPG) and minutes per game (29.6) in the preseason. He will be the engine that will make the Lakers go and there’s absolutely no argument to refute that.

Julius Randle, Tarik Black and the newly-acquired Timofey Mozgov will handle the glass-wiping duties. Each averaged 7.5, 4.4 and 4.3 RPG respectively in the preseason.

I suspect that Brandon Ingram and Mozgov will the be the primary ballplayers at the center position this season. Ingram did lead the team in blocks (1.0 BPG).

But that’s not saying much.

Let’s talk about what the Lakers do well.

They’ll be PACE leaders. The Lakers averaged 98.0 possessions per game last season which was good for 16th, the middle of the pack. I suspect that the number will increase as this team has gotten younger and will be running a lot more with all of those fresh legs on deck. When they face teams like the Houston Rockets, their possession numbers will skyrocket and I see them sustaining this trend for the entire season.

They’ll take care of the basketball. The Lakers were 10th in turnover ratio last season and with a lot of the same players on the roster, there’s no reason to believe that will change. A minute 12.4 percent of their possessions ended in a turnover back in 2015-16.

Next: NBA Scout Rips Rockets 'Atrocious' Team Strategy

Injuries:

Patrick Beverley had successful surgery yesterday — it was a minor knee scope to clean up some the damage that had occurred from his injury. He will be OUT tonight and is expected to be MIA for at least three weeks.

Montrezl Harrell‘s aunt passed away recently and has been away from the team as a result. His availability for tonight remains up in the air as it remains unclear if he made the team trip to Los Angeles. My best guess is that we’ll see him for the home opener Sunday night and he’ll skip this trip.

Jose Calderon strained his calf nearly two weeks ago and is still reeling from that injury. The Lakers have decided to hold him out until he’s fully-healed. He will be OUT tonight.

Three Things to Watch:

James Harden vs. D’Angelo Russell
Eric Gordon vs. Jordan Clarkson
Trevor Ariza vs. Luol Deng
(Bonus) Clint Capela/Nene Hilario vs. Timofey Mozgov

Prediction:

115-102 in a Houston Rockets’ win!

The Rockets hit the road to take on the Lakers at Staples Center.

Tip-off is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. CDT.

The game will be televised on ESPN and broadcast on SportsTalk 790 AM (KBME), Sirius/XM/SiriusXM Internet 890 and La Ranchera 101.7 FM (KNTE) & 850 AM (KEYH) in Spanish.

Go Rockets!

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