3 Thoughts On The 2016-17 Houston Rockets
By Jason Luthor
With the NBA season getting close, it’s time to take a look at what to expect from the teams around the league. Here are three thoughts about the 2016-17 Houston Rockets.
The Houston Rockets are coming off one of the most disappointing seasons in their recent history. Three years after pairing All-Star players Dwight Howard and James Harden, the Rockets slogged through a year in which they started off slow and never looked positioned to challenge for a championship.
Coach Kevin McHale was fired less than a month into the 2015-16 season. Harden and Howard never looked in sync, and the team finished at .500 with a record of 41-41. They once again exited the playoffs early, and now Howard has departed for the Atlanta Hawks. Can the Rockets make progress with the recent team shakeup? Here are three thoughts heading into the 2016-17 season.
Is Howard’s Departure a Good Thing?
At the time of his signing, the team expected Dwight Howard would push the Rockets into serious championship contention. James Harden was a known scorer, and the two were expected to threaten teams from both in the paint and on the perimeter.
2014-15 was the Rockets peak season, and they lost to eventual champions the Golden State Warriors in the Conference Finals. The rumor at the time said Harden and Howard developed chemistry problems, and their on-court performance never matched their name recognition.
This may be a situation where addition happens by subtraction. Howard and Harden may have never been a great fit, and the Rockets might improve just by letting the two part ways.
At the center position, nobody will have the same name recognition and no one person can replace Dwight. Nene, Montrezl Harrell, and Clint Capela now fill the role by committee. Howard missed half of 2014-15 with injury, and playing without him isn’t entirely unfamiliar territory for the Rockets.
The Rockets don’t improve in any concrete way with Howard’s departure, but it may have been what was best for the team’s cohesion.
Rocket Speed
New coach Mike D’Antoni is a known commodity in the NBA. Rather than field traditional big men, D’Antoni prefers speedier lineups. It created friction during his time with the Lakers following the benching of Pau Gasol. Still, his style was fairly successful during his time with the Phoenix Suns.
D’Antoni’s time with the Suns was his most productive coaching tenure. With Steve Nash running the floor at point guard and behind mobile forwards Amar’e Stoudemire and Shawn Marion, D’Antoni had a team tailored to his strengths.
The Rockets have to adapt to that new system. A bigger question is whether they have the personnel to run it. D’Antoni, unlike a Gregg Popovich, doesn’t possess a great deal of flexibility regarding the system he installs. He consistently needs mobile, speedy players to maximize his coaching style.
In some ways, D’Antoni was ahead of his time. His emphasis on speed and mobility became popular around the league and reached its peak in the Golden State Warriors. The problem is that the Warriors do this style better than any other team can hope to. Can the Houston Rockets distinguish themselves enough that they can compete for a championship?
The emphasis on speed, quick scoring, and 3-point shooting is a good match for Harden. Unfortunately, the Rockets played pretty poor defense last year. D’Antoni himself is not exactly known for emphasizing good defense.
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It’s a Complete Restart
The Houston Rockets have a new coach, a committee of players fighting for time at the center position, and an entirely new system to run. They had a brief window after signing Howard whet they aspired to win a championship, but this year, that can’t be their focus.
It’s time for the Rockets to start over, with Harden operating in a new system that will probably maximize his offensive strengths (although his defensive problems might become exaggerated as well).
In the pick and roll, Harden can draw help defenders and leave guys like Nene open for the jumper, a role Howard was never able to fill. When he’s in single coverage, Harden is known around the league for being able to get to the basket or draw a foul.
Still, it takes time to completely adapt to a new system. That’s a learning process that takes more than a year to finish. However, this looks to be a fun, up-tempo year for the Rockets. With their talent, they can get into the first or second round of the playoffs. That gives them room to grow for next season.