Houston Rockets Rumors: Predicting the 2019 playoff rotation

Next Up: Eric Gordon, Kenneth Faried, Austin Rivers

Of course, you probably assumed that Eric Gordon is the man I was alluding to in the final paragraph of the previous slide. Gordon has started a lot of games for the Houston Rockets this season, 47 to be exact (at the time of this writing), but he seems destined to serve as the team’s sixth man come playoff time.

Gordon has posted his worst season to date as a member of the Rockets but he’s remained heavily cemented in the rotation, and for good reason. He has really turned a corner as of late and has risen his three-point percentage almost a full 100 points since the halfway mark of the season.

Gordon plays some decent defense at times but his true value lies in his offensive firepower even though it has been down this season. This is why he would be best served coming off of the bench in the playoffs, to provide an offensive burst when the team needs it.

D’Antoni has down an excellent job balancing Harden and Paul’s playing time to where the team pretty much is never without one of them on the court at all times. But, when one comes off the court, having a guy like Gordon to come onto it to pick up offensive slack would be key.

Following Gordon, the next two guys off of the bench should be Kenneth Faried and Austin Rivers. These two have been key ancillary pieces off of the buyout market but at times, have fallen out of the rotation. However, they both need to be in against whoever the Houston Rockets play in the playoffs.

Faried provides some great energy that manifests itself on the boards, on defense, and even on offense. He’s playing some of the best ball of his career as a Rocket, even shooting and nailing the occasional three. He could be a valuable asset behind Capela.

Rivers has been riding the struggle bus offensively the past couple of weeks even though it seems like he finally may be breaking out of that but he is still a terrific player to have in the rotation. He can be another distributor and always plays aggressive, tenacious defense, which is the biggest key here.

These three guys are likely to see the lion’s share of the minutes off of the bench in the playoffs because of what they all uniquely bring to the team, especially when the Houston Rockets‘ starters need to step off of the court. Their success will be a key part of the team’s success in the playoffs this year.