Rockets-Hawks Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Nov 01 2012 3:43PM

James Harden paid immediate dividends for the Houston Rockets.

The new-look Atlanta Hawks hope their offseason moves will give them the financial flexibility to move in a more successful direction.

Harden will look to build on an impressive team debut Friday night when the host Hawks kick off their 2012-13 season.

Just four days after being acquired from Oklahoma City in a surprising deal that sent Kevin Martin, rookie Jeremy Lamb, two first-round picks and a second-rounder to the defending Western Conference champions, Harden poured in 37 points and added a career-best 12 assists in Wednesday's 105-96 victory at Detroit.

"That was an awesome performance," said point guard Jeremy Lin, who began his second stint with the Rockets with 12 points, eight assists and four steals. "We just let him go to work and played off of him and it was really nice."

So was the five-year, $80 million contract extension Harden signed earlier in the day.

"I think I just wanted to get out there and play," Harden said after fellow newcomer Carlos Delfino hit four fourth-quarter 3-pointers to help Houston rally from an 11-point deficit. "All the talking and all the craziness that has been happening this last week - I just wanted to go out there and play basketball."

Danny Ferry, the Hawks' new president of basketball operations and general manager, understands the challenge his team faces with Harden now the focal point of the Rockets' offense.

"James is one of the really good young shooting guards in the NBA. He'll really make them a better team," Ferry told the Hawks' official website. "It was a trade based off the new CBA and how teams have to make some more financial decisions going forward. Certainly Oklahoma City did that in this situation."

The Hawks still have a major decision to make regarding Josh Smith, who enters the final year of his deal after averaging career highs of 18.8 points and 9.6 rebounds last season when Atlanta finished 40-26. Ferry, though, has already shown he's not afraid to pull the trigger on a big deal.

Trying to lead the organization in a new direction - the Hawks have failed to advance to the Eastern Conference finals despite making the playoffs each of the last five seasons - Ferry traded Joe Johnson and Marvin Williams in separate deals this summer.

The Hawks acquired Anthony Morrow, Jordan Farmar, DeShawn Stevenson, Jordan Williams, and a second-round pick from Brooklyn for Johnson, who has four years and $90 million left on his contract.

Atlanta sent Williams and the two years left on his deal to Utah for point guard Devin Harris, whose contract expires after this season.

"It's definitely going to be a challenge because we're semi-rebuilding," said Smith, one of five returning Hawks. "You hate to see those guys leave. But we're going to be playing with different teammates now, so we've got to try to make things work."

The Hawks will employ a new up-tempo approach, but their guard-heavy roster which includes Jeff Teague as well as newcomers Kyle Korver, Lou Williams - second to Harden in last season's Sixth Man of the Year voting - and rookie John Jenkins could present problems on the defensive end.

"When you look at us on paper, everybody says we're a team that has some good players, can make shots, will be able to get up and down the floor, will be able to score," said coach Larry Drew, whose team was sixth in scoring defense last season at 93.2 points per game. "But will we be able to defend? That will be the big question."

The Hawks have two-time All-Star center Al Horford back after he missed most of last season with a torn pectoral muscle.

Smith gives Atlanta one of the top shot blockers in the NBA - he's averaging 2.2 since entering the league in 2004-05 - but the undersized Hawks will need solid minutes in the post from Zaza Pachulia and Ivan Johnson.

Rockets coach Kevin McHale has to feel good about his team's frontcourt after newcomer Omer Asik and second-year center Greg Smith combined for 22 points and 14 rebounds in the opener.

Harden has 45, Rockets beat Hawks 109-102

By CHARLES ODUM
Posted Nov 03 2012 1:21AM

ATLANTA (AP) The Houston Rockets are winning with James Harden performing like the team's new franchise player.

The Atlanta Hawks struggled in the start of their new era without their longtime franchise player.

Harden continued to shine at the start of his Houston career, scoring a career-high 45 points to lead the Rockets to a 109-102 victory over the Hawks on Friday night.

Harden, traded to the Rockets from Oklahoma City on Saturday, topped 30 points for the second time in his first week with his new team.

"He's pretty good, I'd say," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. "He just kept battling and playing."

Jeremy Lin, who had 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, said Harden makes a "big time" difference.

"He frees everybody up," Lin said. "He knows what he's doing. We're thankful that he showed up."

Marcus Morris had 17 points for Houston.

Rockets center Omer Asik had a career-high 19 rebounds but did not score, missing seven shots from the field.

Lou Williams led the Hawks with 22 points in his Atlanta debut. Josh Smith had 18 points and 10 rebounds.

Williams averaged a career-high 14.9 points per game with the Sixers last season when he was runner-up to Harden for NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Award.

Williams appears bound for another year as a sixth man. Harden is thriving in his new role as a starter.

"It's a lot different," Harden said. "Having the offense run basically through you, it's a lot different, but that's my job now so I've got to get used to it."

Harden said he wasn't focused on his impressive scoring in his first two games.

"I don't even worry about it," he said. "I just go out there and play hard."

The Hawks traded six-time All-Star Joe Johnson to the Brooklyn Nets in July for five players and a draft pick. Johnson averaged more than 20 points in five of his seven seasons as Atlanta's top player.

"We're still trying to establish an identity," Hawks coach Larry Drew said. "That may take a little time to do."

Drew said his team struggled in rebounding and on defense, especially in helping stop Harden's drives.

"When he gets the basketball in transition, he's going to get to the basket," Drew said. "It won't be just one guy's responsibility, it will be a team responsibility."

With the game tied 92-92, Harden had consecutive baskets, including a three-point play, to give Houston the lead for good. Chandler Parson's 3-pointer with 1:55 remaining pushed the lead to 100-94.

Harden was 14 of 19 from the field and 15 of 17 from the free throw line. Harden's 17 free-throw attempts matched Atlanta's total.

Harden, who signed a five-year, $80 million contract extension with Houston following the trade, had 37 points, 12 assists and six rebounds in a 105-96 win at Detroit in his debut on Wednesday night.

Houston led after each of the first three periods. The Rockets took a 68-52 lead in the third before Atlanta cut the deficit to 81-74 at the end of the quarter.

A basket by Smith with 7:12 remaining gave Atlanta an 88-87 lead, its first since the opening period.

"We were just trying to put together as many stops as we could," Williams said. "We battled our way back into the game to even get it to that point."

The Rockets are 2-0, but McHale said the team needs work on closing out wins.

"We need a few days together in the gym where we can slow some things down and figure out how we want to finish games," McHale said.

After a preseason of sampling lineup combinations, Drew had two newcomers - Devin Harris and Kyle Korver - join Al Horford, Smith and Jeff Teague. Drew said he had "a little indecision" about Harris starting at shooting guard as the coach worried about the defensive matchup with Harden, who at 6-foot-5 is at least 3 inches taller than Harris.

DeShawn Stevenson, who could match Harden's height - and at least come close to matching Harden's beard - became an important player off the bench for Atlanta.

Stevenson had 12 points on four 3-pointers, including one at the buzzer to end the first half.

Teague had 14 points and seven assists and Horford had 14 points.

The Rockets had a 58-36 advantage in rebounds.

"We have some things that we really have to focus in and work on," Drew said. "There were areas in this game where we weren't very good, very polished, particularly on the boards."

Drew said his perimeter players were beaten for too many long rebounds.

"We didn't play well, yet we gave ourselves a chance in fighting back," he said.

Notes: Houston F Patrick Patterson started after missing the opener with a strained left quad. C Greg Smith (strained left foot) did not play. ... Harden's previous career high was 40 points against the Suns on April 18. ... Hawks C Johan Petro was inactive. ... Stevenson fouled out in the final minute. ... Harden is the first player to score 40 points against Atlanta since LeBron James had 43 points on March 18, 2011.

Notebook: Rockets 109, Hawks 102

Jonathan Cooper, for NBA.com
Posted Sat Nov 03, 2012 12:02 AM - Updated Sat Nov 03, 2012 12:24 AM

THE FACTS: Critics who said James Harden wouldn't score 37 again, as he did in his Houston Rockets debut Wednesday night were right.

Harden scored a career-high 45, including 14 of Houston's final 19 over the final 5:00 to lift the Rockets to a 109-102 victory over the Atlanta Hawks. The explosive guard, acquired from Oklahoma City six days ago and signed to a long-term extension during the week, shot a blazing 14-of-19, 2-of-4 from three and hit 15 of 17 foul shots, seven in the final 65 seconds to ice the game for the 2-0 Rockets.

Jeremy Lin perfectly complemented Harden, nearly a triple-double, with 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists and Marcus Morris came off the bench to add a career-high 17 points. The Rockets also dominated on the boards, holding a 58-36 edge, led by center Omer Asik, who had 19 rebounds (nine offensive, 10 defensive).

Atlanta native Lou Williams scored a team-high 22 points in his Hawks debut, and Josh Smith recorded an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double for the Hawks (0-1).

The Hawks led by six early on, but the Rockets went on a 10-3 run to take the lead and ended the quarter with another 10-2 run to take a 28-21 lead after one. The lead would grow to 16 with 6:30 remaining in the third quarter before Atlanta fought back, melting the lead to seven after three and taking the lead three-point lead with 7:00 to play. From there Harden took over.

QUOTABLE: "I don't think James needs much fire. He just likes to play. I don't think he's thinking about 'I've got stuff to prove.' I think he's thinking 'What do I have to do to help my team win→'" -- Rockets head coach Kevin McHale.

THE STAT: Offensive rebounds: Houston 23, Atlanta 7: Houston shot a little over 42 percent, lower than Atlanta, and made two fewer field goals than the Hawks, but 23 offensive rebounds allowed the Rockets extra possessions. Asik pulled down nine of those offensive rebounds → two more than the entire Hawks team (center Zaza Pachulia had five of the seven for Atlanta).

TURNING POINT: Harden was superb at the line, making 15 of 17, yet a missed free throw turned out to be one of the game's biggest plays. He had just made a 17-footer to five the Rockets a 94-92 lead, drawing a foul on Atlanta's DeShawn Stevenson in the process. But the ensuing free-throw rolled out. Forward Patrick Patterson grabbed the rebound. Harden got the ball back, held it momentarily, then accelerated through the lane, scoring on a layup and drawing a foul from Atlanta center Al Horford. This time he made the foul shot. Houston was up 97-92 and the Hawks would get no closer than three the rest of the way.

QUOTABLE II: "This is a resilient group. You saw our youth today. We had a 14-point lead and gave it back and we kept getting leads and giving it back. Great teams don't do that but I'm just glad we stuck it out." -- Lin on the Rockets keeping their poise late in the fourth quarter.

HOT: The Rockets' back court of Harden and Lin were virtually unstoppable in the third quarter, as the duo combined for 20 of Houston's 28 points, shooting a combined 7-9 (Harden 4-for-6, Lin 3-3), 3-for-4 from three (Harden 1-for-2, Lin, 2-for-2), and 3-for-4 from the foul line (Harden 1-for-2, Lin, 2-for-2).

NOT: Houston started the game shooting 0-for-15 from behind the arc. The Rockets didn't convert until 1:50 left in the second quarter. It turned out to be a big shot, as the three from Harden, who was fouled on the play, resulted in a four-point play, extending Houston's lead to 49-35. The Rockets turned it around, making 8 of their final 15 threes, and making one more than Atlanta for the game.

NOTABLE: Celebrities in the crowd included comedian Chris Tucker and the cast of the AMC zombie drama "The Walking Dead"...Atlanta had only six fewer second-chance points despite Houston's huge edge in offensive rebounding. Part of that was Houston's 5-for-16 shooting on second-chance opportunities to Atlanta's 4-of-5...Harden's 15-for-17 line from the free throw line matched Atlanta's exactly...The Hawks saw their streak of six straight home-opening wins come to an end with the loss...Horford, who didn't get his first shot points until the 7:09 mark of the second quarter, finished with 14 points on 6-for-10 shooting...Atlanta point Jeff Teague matched Lin with a game-high seven assists, with Houston forward Chandler Parsons dishing out six, four of them in the first quarter. Atlanta's bench outscored Houston 47-28, led by Pachulia's 13 points and eight rebounds and Stevenson's 12 points, on 4-of-6 from three...The Hawks had a 33-18 edge in fast break points.

UP NEXT: For the Rockets, Saturday vs. Portland, Wednesday vs. Denver, Friday @ Memphis. For the Hawks, Sunday @ Oklahoma City, Wednesday vs. Indiana, Friday vs. Miami.

• Rockets: Machado, Smith
• Hawks: Petro

• Rockets: --
• Hawks: --

• Lead Changes: 7
• Times Tied: 4

• Arena: Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA
• Officials: #14 Ed Malloy, #65 Sean Wright, #70 Brent Barnaky
• Attendance: 18238
• Duration: 2:14