Golden State Warriors: 5 Lessons From WCFs Game 1

1. The Rockets Should Not Be Underestimated

As much as the small-ball lineups worked like gangbusters, a quick look to the final score will remind you that the Warriors only won this game by four points after smoking the Rockets in all four regular season meetings. The reason? That was the regular season, and this is a VERY different Houston team.

First of all, let’s acknowledge that as much as everyone expected Curry and the Dubs to destroy Harden’s Rockets and finally silence any lingering MVP complaints, this battle of the leading MVP candidates lived up to its billing.

Curry was phenomenal from downtown, but Harden was just as elite overall, finishing with 28 points, 11 rebound, nine assists and four steals while going 11-for-20 from the floor.

Any player who can do something that hasn’t been done since Michael Jordan is a player you need to worry about. Just ask Klay Thompson, who, aside from having a 6-for-18 shooting night, was put in Harden’s blender over and over again in the fourth quarter.

It wasn’t Thompson’s fault; he was actually playing tremendous defense. That’s just how good Harden is.

On the surface, it may seem demoralizing that Houston got such a historic performance out of Harden and still lost, but then you remember they were playing without Dwight Howard. This team is resilient and they found their stride in that last series after becoming the ninth team in NBA history to rally from a 3-1 series deficit.

In an arena where only three teams have beaten the Dubs all season long, the Rockets were right there until the very end — without their superstar center, no less. With additions like Corey Brewer, Josh Smith, Pablo Prigioni and Terrence Jones, this Rockets team is a lot better than the one Golden State saw for most of the regular season.

When Harden is cooking and attacking the basket (like he was last night), when Trevor Ariza is forcing turnovers and knocking down threes (like he was last night) and when Josh Smith is playing a well-rounded game (like he was last night with 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists), the Rockets are dangerous.

Even after the Game 1 victory, this series will only be a cakewalk if Howard is dealing with a significant knee injury. And even then, there’s a good chance this resilient bunch will find a way to make life tough on the Warriors.

Golden State will need to play better than they did in Game 1, because even if my “Warriors in 5” prediction comes to fruition, this Houston team is going to make them work for it every step of the way.

Next: Stephen Curry: Top 10 Moments From His MVP Season

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