The 2017 basketball season looks promising for the Houston Rockets. For a team that has been improving throughout the last couple of seasons, the franchise can only be excited about what the future holds in the next upcoming years. Their star guard, James Harden. has made it clear that he is one of the best players in the league. Hardens' play since leaving the Oklahoma Thunder has been mind blowing and has caught every NBA spectator by surprise. The Houston superstar went from coming off the bench as a sixth man option, to leading an NBA organization into the playoffs on multiple occasions as their leader.
Although Harden and the Rockets have not made a championship appearance the team believes that they are not too far off from accomplishing their initial goal.
Offense comes too Hard
One of the problems the Rockets have faced in the past has been inconsistent scoring and turnovers. Patrick Beverly was able to run the Houston offense well and in addition to running the offense, he also was able to help the team defensively. When it came time to score the basketball it seemed as though James Harden was the only player on the roster that was able to accomplish the task at hand at will. James was able to average 29 points per game during the 2016 regular season while being able to get others involved as well.
His 11 assist per game showed his outstanding ability to understand the game other teams decided to play against him. Lou Williams was able to help Harden maintain the scoring load as he contributed hot scoring runs while coming off of the bench. When the Houston Rockets got into tight game situations they looked at Harden to take charge of the situation.
This often led to a chain of turnovers and confusion on the Rockets behalf. Understanding that the team needed another scoring option that could manage the game equally or better, the Houston front office went to work.
Help me Facilitate
While James Harden was trying to control his situation in Houston, Chris Paul was experiencing the same dilemma in Los Angeles.
The Clippers were derailed by inconsistent play and injuries during the 2016 season which put all of the attention on the all-star point guard. Nevertheless, Chris Paul led his team into playoff contention despite the distractions he encountered throughout the long ride the regular season brought. It was already a fact that Chris would not be playing in Los Angeles in 2017 and when free agency began the pursuit was on for Paul. After multiple teams showed interest in the ultimate floor general, Paul decided to settle down in Houston which may have been the most dangerous sight in the free agent period of the NBA offseason. With the help of Chris Paul, James Harden will finally be able to play the role he has been meant to play since entering the league. While his new point guard continues to distribute 9.2 assists per game, Harden will be able to work offensively without the ball which will ultimately open up the Rockets offense.
