The Golden State Warriors lose at home to the Houston Rockets 122-121. It was the first game of the All-Star point guard Chris Paul in Houston Rockets uniform after he was traded from the Los Angeles Clippers. This win against the Golden State Warriors is surely a huge confidence booster for the Rockets which proves that they can be as deadly offensively as anyone in the league after they came back from a huge deficit to win the game.
The Golden State Warriors had two chances to win the game late in the game clock, Stephen Curry missed a three-point shot while Kevin Durant's late-game heroics was waved off after not getting the shot off in time.
Takeaways from the Golden State Warriors
Draymond Green of the Warriors had to leave the game during the third quarter after suffering an injury on his left knee. Green is undoubtedly the Golden State Warriors' heart and best defender and with him out of the game posed a problem with David West taking over his duties. He finished the game with a near triple-double with nine points, 11 rebounds, 13 assists, and one block.
Shooting guard Nick Young led the Golden State Warriors in scoring after coming off the bench with 23 points including 20 in the first half while shooting six out of seven from the three-point line. All-Star forward Kevin Durant had 20 points, five rebounds, seven assists and four blocks.
All-Star point guard Stephen Curry tallied 22 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
Takeaways from the Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets did what they did offensively during the past NBA season which is to isolate James Harden and watch him work. Eric Gordon, Luc Mbah a Moute and P.J. Tucker also had a good game off the bench offensively but Chris Paul seems to have struggled to play off the ball while Harden took over most of the ball-handling duties.
This problem with Chris Paul will surely have a major effect on the Rockets' success this season.
Rockets' All-Star shooting guard James Harden led all scorers with 27 points while adding six rebounds and ten assists. Eric Gordon added 24 points in nine out of 16 shooting while newly acquired guard Chris Paul had four points, eight rebounds, and 11 assists.
The Golden State Warriors are undeniably the favorites to win this year's NBA championship. Even though the Houston Rockets won this game, this does not indicate what is about to happen when the NBA postseason comes around where the Warriors will surely show how good and explosive they can be.
