After advancing to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in 39 years, only the Houston Rockets remain in the Warriors way of a trip to the NBA Finals.
Game 1: Warriors vs. Rockets
Tuesday, May 196:00 p.m.Oracle ArenaTV: ESPNRadio: KNBR 1050
The Warriors have advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in 39 years, and after dispatching the New Orleans Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies in the first two rounds of the playoffs, only the Houston Rockets remain in the Warriors way for the right to represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals. While the two teams operate at a similar pace (the two fastest in the NBA) and in a similar style (three-pointers galore), the paths both sides took to get to this point add another layer of likeness to what should be a fun and fascinating matchup.
Not ten days ago, the Dubs found themselves on the wrong end of a 2-1 series deficit after the Grizzlies had handed the Warriors consecutive defeats despite being held to less than 100 points in each game, a task no other Golden State opponent had accomplished even once throughout the entire year. Outside of the locker room, the common perception was that the Warriors were rattled, that Memphis had figured them out, and that a 67-win regular season was headed for an abrupt and disappointing end, and soon. Inside the locker room, however, the Dubs were anxious - to get back on the court and put an end to the hysterical narrative that had gone too far off the tracks. They responded as they have all season long, obliterating the Grizzlies by 17 points on Memphis’ home floor and wrestling back the momentum of the series in the process. That statement game began a stretch of three-straight victories to close out the series, all of which were quite possibly the Warriors’ three best games of the postseason, and served as a loud reminder to us all that this team did not win 67 regular season games by accident. The Warriors are very, very good, and now approach the Western Conference Finals with the confidence that they’re hitting their stride just in time.
The Rockets, similarly, aren’t lacking in the self-confidence department either. If the Warriors’ bandwagon had reached crisis mode upon trailing 2-1, the nervous energy surrounding Houston after going down 3-1 to the Clippers was seemingly palpable enough to power another mission to the moon. Only eight teams in NBA history had ever come all the way back from a 3-1 series deficit to win a best-of-seven playoff series, and the prospect of having to win three-straight games, including one on the road, was nothing less than daunting. Then, when Houston trailed by 19 points with three minutes left in the third quarter of Game 6 in Los Angeles, the Rockets’ championship aspirations were bleaker than a shuttle launch in a thunderstorm. However, with failure all but assured, suddenly everything changed; the clouds parted, the sun shone through, and the Rockets came away with one of the most surprising and shocking comebacks in NBA history. Houston cut the deficit to a manageable 13 points heading into the fourth quarter, and then outscored the Clippers 40-15 in the final period on their way to a 119-107 victory. As astounding as the comeback was, it was made all the more impressive by the fact that it was accomplished without the contributions of the MVP runner-up, as James Harden sat out all but the final minute. The Rockets seized control of the series with that comeback victory, and became the ninth team in NBA history to come all the way back from a 3-1 deficit after winning Game 7 on Sunday. They’re resilient, they’re talented, and now they could just be the most overlooked and underrated 2-seed to ever make it to the Conference Finals.
Yes, the pundits would have you believe this series is substantially lopsided in favor of the Warriors, despite the fact that Houston won 56 games in the regular season on their way to a Southwest division title and preceded their epic comeback over the Clippers by cruising past the 7-seed Mavericks in five games in the first round. Granted, the Dubs didn’t exactly give us many reasons to doubt their ability to match up with the Rockets after sweeping the four-game regular season series between the two teams, none of which were really all that close. While Golden State won both of their home games over the Rockets by an average of 12.5 points, they actually had a higher margin of victory in the two games in Houston (+18.0). Now, while you can’t argue with results, it is worth noting that the Rockets team the Warriors are about to face is not the same one they dominated in the regular season. For one, Dwight Howard missed two of those games due to injury, and the Rockets have made multiple lineup tweaks since the last time these two teams saw each other all the way back on January 21. Houston has been decimated by the injury bug all season long, as evidenced by the prolonged absences of Howard, Patrick Beverley and Terrence Jones, but that’s opened up opportunities for other contributors, which has expedited the development of their depth. Also, Houston's midseason acquisitions of Josh Smith and Pablo Prigioni weren't there for every encounter with the Dubs, and both of those players have played crucial roles in their postseason run thus far. So, while we can look back on regular season results for some insights into what might happen in the series ahead, it’s crucial to remember that they must also be taken with a grain of salt. All that considered, here are three storylines to keep an eye on:
1. The MVP Race Realized
Stephen Curry and James Harden made their case for the league’s MVP award over the course of an 82-game regular season; now they get a head-to-head playoff series to make a statement in either defense or criticism of its ultimate result. There’s an abundance of mutual respect between the two All-Star guards, and while they’re the first to acknowledge each other’s success this season, they’ve both reached the heights they have in part due to the fact that they both honestly believe in their own worthiness for the award. Obviously, Curry came away with the honor and there’s little value in deliberating its validity now, but rest assured, each player would gladly give up the individual designation in exchange for a trip to the NBA Finals. Those are the stakes this series offers, and it should make for a fascinating matchup in which two of the league’s brightest stars will be given a chance to carry their teams one step closer to the ultimate goal of a championship.
2. A Hefty Helping of Howard
As mentioned, Dwight Howard sat out two of the Rockets’ four losses at the hands of the Warriors this season due to injury. The hulking center is back now and fully healthy, and is looking more and more like the player who dominated his position for the last several years. He’s obviously a huge boost to Houston when it comes to his rebounding and shot-blocking ability, but in the games he did play against the Warriors in the regular season, the Rockets actually performed significantly better when he was not on the court. During the regular season, Golden State scored 130.7 points per 48 minutes against the Rockets when Howard was on the floor, compared to 108.0 when he was off of it. It’s a differential that is a little hard to explain considering Howard’s reputation as a staunch rim protector, but it points to a tactic by which the Warriors have been able to cause the Rockets trouble. Howard is great by the rim, but he’s not near it against the Warriors as often as he is against other teams. The Dubs utilize lineups filled with three-point threats that compel the opposition’s interior defenders to step out to the perimeter, thereby vacating the lane. If, say, Draymond Green is draining threes, that’s going to force the Rockets into a defensive strategy that doesn’t accentuate their strengths. While a healthy Howard could be a significant upgrade, the Warriors have proven that they can succeed, with or without him on the court.
3. Hack-A-Whoever
Whether it’s against Howard, Andrew Bogut, Andre Iguodala or someone else, chances are we’ll see the Hack-A-Shaq strategy employed at some point during this series. It’s not beautiful basketball, but with a little luck, it can be an effective tactic if utilized properly. Steve Kerr is admittedly not a proponent of the strategy - he believes there should be a harsher penalty for intentionally fouling someone off the ball – and it can be severely detrimental to a team that likes to get out and run, as the Warriors so often do. However, that’s exactly why this series is likely to feature it. Kerr may not like how it slows down the game, but if Howard is struggling from the charity stripe, it could be worth the accumulation of fouls amongst his frontcourt depth. Similarly, Houston knows all too well how quickly the Warriors can run away with a game if they’re firing on all cylinders, and by intentionally fouling, they could possibly mitigate the damage the Warriors are able to cause on the fast break. Of course, the quickest way to eliminate the instances of the strategy is to make the free throws that occur as a result of it, so if the players don’t like it, they’ve got the tools at their disposal to do away with its existence.
As stated earlier, there are plenty of reasons to believe the postseason series between these two teams won’t play out exactly how it did in the regular season. Still, here are a few notes to keep in mind from their regular season encounters:
- The Warriors were the only team to beat the Rockets four times in the regular season. Only one other team (San Antonio) beat them more than twice.
- The Rockets’ current starting lineup (with Josh Smith and Jason Terry) didn’t play in any of the four meetings.
- No team shot better against the Rockets than the Warriors, who had an effective field goal percentage of 55.3 percent.
- The total point differential (61 points) was the largest between two teams that finished with winning records.
Take a further look at each of the 2014-15 regular season matchups between the Warriors and Rockets below:
November 8, 2014 | GSW 98-87 | Toyota Center, Houston
Stephen Curry did a little bit of everything as the Warriors remained undefeated on the young season after a 98-87 win in Houston. With the game hanging in the balance, the All-Star guard scored or assisted on 14 of the team’s last 16 points as the Warriors ended the game on a 16-5 run. That game-ending run, however, wasn’t the only defining one the team went on. After sluggish play plagued the team throughout the first half, the Warriors opened the second half on a 22-4 run that turned an eight-point deficit into a 10-point lead midway through the third period. Curry was equally involved in both game changing runs, and he completed the game with 34 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals – his second points-rebounds double-double of the season.
December 10, 2014 | GSW 105-93 | Oracle Arena, Oakland
The Warriors closed the game on a 16-4 run and extended their winning streak to 14 games with a 105-93 win over the Rockets. A close one throughout with 14 lead changes and seven ties, the game was within three points for the better part of the fourth quarter. But then Draymond Green broke an 89-89 tie with a thunderous slam with 4:24 left in the game. That came in the middle of nine straight possessions in which the Warriors scored, and the team never relinquished the lead from there. The game-ending run put the exclamation point on period that saw the Dubs outscore Houston 32-17.
January 17, 2015 | GSW 131-106 | Toyota Center, Houston
The Warriors bounced back in a big way, defeating the Rockets 131-106 in Houston in the second game of a back-to-back. Carrying a five point lead into the second half, the Warriors exploded with 36 points in the third quarter to extend their lead to 22 points to put the game out of reach. Stephen Curry recorded a double-double with 27 points and 11 assists, while Klay Thompson matched him with 27 points and a career-high five blocks.
January 21, 2015 | GSW 126-113 | Oracle Arena, Oakland
The Warriors finished off a four-game season sweep of the Houston Rockets with a 126-113 victory at Oracle Arena. Draymond Green, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson each connected on three 3-pointers apiece, and the Dubs led by as many as 30 points before the Rockets made it more respectable in the fourth quarter. Thompson would lead Golden State with 27 points, while Stephen Curry notched another double-double with 22 points and 10 assists. The win was the Warriors 17th-straight victory at home, marking the longest home winning streak in franchise history.
HEAD-TO-HEAD: WARRIORS VS. ROCKETS
Statistical leaders from the team's four regular season matchups
As crazy as it sounds, after a month of postseason play, the Warriors are only halfway to their ultimate goal of an NBA Championship. The trials and tribulations they’ve withstood through the first two rounds will undoubtedly serve them well as they take on a Rockets squad that’s been through a fair amount of their own. While both sides have plenty of reasons to be proud of their accomplishments thus far, sadly, one team will ultimately see its season end within the next two weeks. That’s the nature of playoff basketball, and a reality both teams have flirted with (to varying degrees) already this postseason. They were the two best teams in the Western Conference this season, and they’ve both earned the right to be here. Now, the Warriors and Rockets battle it out in a best-of-seven series for the right to advance to the NBA Finals.
Game 1 tips off on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. at Oracle Arena. Throughout the series, make sure to tune into Warriors Playoff Central for the most updated information and behind-the-scenes coverage of the team's playoff journey.