Houston Rockets @ Portland Trail Blazers: Game 17: Sneak Peek Analysis
The Houston Rockets need to get on a win streak and fast.
The Houston Rockets need to get on a win streak and fast.
Yes, this will allow to pull ahead in the standings and gain some leadership in the Western Conference.
They’ll have a opportunity as they’ll be out West for the rest of the week, returning back to H-Town toward the end.
Tonight, they’ll be facing the 9-9 Portland Trail Blazers to which they beat quite handily 126-109 back Nov. 17th.
Nothing has changed here — they use the same formula and they should still be able to beat the Blazers.
But if their shot is not falling, then this team will have problems because they haven’t quite learned how to overcome that adversity just yet.
It won’t be easy playing in the Moda Center as well as they have one of the most fiery crowds in the league.
Did I mention they’re playing on the back-end of a holiday week?
But despite what’s in front of them — they’ll be able to handle their business.
We shall see!
So who’s leading the charge for the Blazers?
Damian Lillard leads the Blazers in points (28.3 PPG) and dimes (5.3 APG). Mason Plumlee is the top board-getter (6.9 RPG) and board-getter (0.9 BPG). Al-Farouq Aminu is in charge of the steals (1.5 SPG).
Let’s talk about what the Blazers do well.
They’re offensively potent. The Blazers have elevated to 8th in offensive efficiency, with the team averaging 106.3 points per 100 possessions.
They love to have the basketball in their hands. The Blazers are ranked 9th in the as far as PACE, averaging 101.3 possessions per game.
They shoot the ball well as a team. The Blazers are ranked 7th in the NBA as far as effective field goal percentage (51.6)
Next: James Harden: A New Team, Attitude, A Breath Of Fresh Air
Injuries:
Patrick Beverley had successful surgery Oct. 25 — it was a minor knee scope to clean up some the damage that had occurred from his injury.
Bev made his debut last Thursday against the Portland Trail Blazers and posted 11 points, three blocks and three assists in 25 minutes of action.
He was 5-for-8 from the field and 1-for-2 from behind-the-arc. It’s expected from him to be on minutes-restriction up to 25 per for the time being as he knocks the rust and tests the knee.
He will continue to start as he had been doing in the past.
He recently saw 31 minutes of action against the Sacramento Kings Friday night so it’s possible that Bev is officially on the mend.
We’ll have to continue to see how this plays out.
There are no injuries to report for the Portland Trail Blazers.
Source(s): Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle
Three Things to Watch:
- James Harden vs. C.J. McCollum
- Patrick Beverley vs. Damian Lillard
- Clint Capela vs. Mason Plumlee
Prediction:
109-98 in a Houston Rockets’ win!
The Rockets hit the road to take on the Blazers at the Moda Center.
Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. CST.
The game will be televised on ROOT Sports Southwest 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!