Houston Rockets: Three things to improve on after week one
By T.A. Mock
Shutting down the opponent in the paint is a must
First off, let me start with this, the Houston Rockets have done a phenomenal job limiting and defending the three this year. They’ve only allowed the 6th fewest three point attempts and the 2nd fewest makes. That all amounts to only allowing opponents to convert on 28% of their three-pointers.
That being said, since the three ball hasn’t been working against these Rockets, team’s have implemented another strategy, drive to the paint. Opponents are taking an extremely high number of two-point shots and making them at 58% clip.
The advantage of stopping threes goes out the window when opposing teams are able to score in the paint at will. Capela was an elite stopper last year in the paint, however, he’s struggled to jump to that level of defense during the first week of the season.
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The other guys that troll the paint for the Rockets haven’t done him any favors either. Everyone knew Melo wasn’t a world beater on the defensive end but guys like Tucker were supposed to help out.
However, the backup bigs the team has haven’t been healthy to contribute when Capela needs a breather. Marquese Chriss and Nene have both been held out of all three contests without a return date set. These two guys are both solid defenders and can prevent points in the paint.
The Rockets desperately need to get this one figured out. Even a high powered offense can’t always outrun a putrid defense. The 2017-18 Rockets rode a strong defense and offense to the Western Conference Finals, the 2018-19 Rockets need to get things turned around quickly in order to do the same.
Next. Four things to establish in the first month of the season. dark
It’s only been one week so, there is no reason to panic about any of these three things. However, if the Houston Rockets want to contend, they need to get these sorted out as soon as possible.