GDHQNBA15_2pg-Houston Rockets

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WESTERN CONFERENCE SOUTHWEST DIVISION Houston After a summer where key contributors Omer Asik, Omri Casspi, Jeremy Lin and Chandler Parsons departed and the Rockets failed to lure Carmelo Anthony away from New York or Chris Bosh from Miami, general manager Daryl Morey made three notable additions in defensive stopper Trevor Ariza, Joey Dorsey, an ex-Raptor who has been in Europe the past few years, and Jason Terry, a member of Dallas’ 2011 championship team. However, the Rockets still have James Harden and Dwight Howard, two franchise cornerstones who are arguably the best at their shooting guard and center positions, respectively, to build around going forward. “I like the pieces that we have. We’re going to miss a lot of those guys, especially the bond that we developed off the court. We were real brothers. We just added some new brothers,” Howard said. “It’s tough to see people leave. It’s the nature of the business. We wish those guys nothing but the best except when they play us.” DEFENSE Offense wasn’t an issue for Houston last season, but defense was. Last year’s Rockets allowed 103.1 points per game (23rd in NBA), 1,201 second-chance points (second most) and 1,478 points off turnovers (third most). Houston head coach Kevin McHale is well aware of that dichotomy. “Honestly, we were kind of a front-running team last year. Our defense and our offense improved. You’ve got to be just the opposite. If you’re not scoring, your defense has got to pick up. It can’t take a back seat,” McHale said. That’s one reason why the Rockets added Ariza, one of the better defensive stoppers in the Association. This is the veteran’s second stint in the franchise and he feels that with some work, the Rockets could be a much better defensive team. “I thought they were a really good team last year, scored a lot of points, didn’t really do too much on the defensive end. But again, that takes time,” Ariza said. “They have a lot of young players this year. Hopefully we can focus on both ends instead of one.” As a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, defense is a huge part of Howard’s game, so it makes sense that McHale expects Harden, a player known more for offense, along with Howard to lead by example on that end of the floor. “Last year, we had a lot of offensivedriven guys,” McHale said. “This year we have a few more guys that are looking at it from a defensive side as much as the offensive side. That starts with James Harden, Dwight Howard and those guys setting the tone.” And no matter whether it was last year, his second in Houston, or earlier in his career with Oklahoma City, Harden is a guy who has been oft criticized for a perceived lack of defensive focus, something he plans on changing this season. “I hear it but I don’t pay attention to it,” Harden said of that criticism. “I know I can be a really good defender. I know I have to be better at it. For us to go and reach our potential, it’s something that has to be done. It’s me focusing on the possessions. It’s not whether I can do it. It’s really me losing my man or small things like that which can be corrected. Focusing on small things like that can really make a difference.” OFFENSE Considering the Rockets averaged 107.7 points per game last season, second highest in the NBA, offense was clearly not an issue. But Asik, Casspi, Lin and Parsons combined for 43 points a night, leaving a fairly tough void to fill. Despite losing them, Houston still isn’t short on offensive firepower with Harden (25.3 PPG), Howard (18.3), Terrence Jones (12.1) and Patrick Beverley (10.2) all returning to the starting five along with newcomer Ariza (who’s an almost 10-ppg scorer over his 11-year career. With so many losses, Morey and McHale expect a number of young players to embrace the opportunity to play more and to make serious contributions. “There’s a lot of unknowns going into this year. We have new players. I’ve never coached Trevor Ariza. I like Trevor. I think he’s James Harden Bill Baptist/NBAE/Getty Images


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