Breaking down the Houston Rockets restart schedule
July 31 vs Dallas Mavericks
Houston is 1-1 against Dallas on the season and with the Mavericks, who are currently the seventh seed in the Western Conference, only 1.5 games back of the Rockets this game is of huge importance in terms of seeding. If the Rockets win this game then they hold the tie-breaker over Dallas and it also gives them a 2.5 game cushion over the Mavericks.
A win here would also go a long way in helping the Rockets win the Southwest Division which would give Houston a major advantage if they found themselves in a tie with other teams in the West.
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But if the Rockets were to lose this game then the Mavericks hold the tie-breaker and cuts the gap for the sixth seed between Houston and Dallas to only half a game. A loss to Dallas could easily result in Houston being the seventh seed in the West come playoff time which is why this game is of utmost importance and a must-win for the Rockets.
A key thing to watch is this game will be how the Rockets defend the 7’3″ Kristaps Porzingis. While no one doubts that Houston has the offensive firepower the play with any team in the league, many people feel like the Rockets’ lack of size will lead to their downfall in the playoffs. The amount of success the Rockets have in defending Porzingis will be an early sign to whether or not the Rockets’ small-ball lineup will be able to contain some of the league’s best bigs over the course of a seven-game series.