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Golden State Warriors: Southwest Division Preview

By Carlos Murillo

Oct 31, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) is guarded by Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) during the first half of a game at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 31, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) is guarded by Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) during the first half of a game at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /
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Golden State Warriors
May 23, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) looks to drive as Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) defends during the first half in game three of the Western Conference Finals of the NBA Playoffs at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /

Houston Rockets

2015-16 record: 41-41

The Houston Rockets have been one of the trickiest teams in the NBA to get a feel for recently. Their inconsistencies and chemistry issues have turned this team into a circus show at times. They dropped from the second seed and Western Conference Finalist in 2015 to an eighth seed that barely finished .500.

James Harden is everyone’s favorite star to rip into and make fun of. CBS Sports’ Matt Moore wrote a pretty awesome piece on what makes judging Harden’s entire package so complex. He is equally brilliant offensively as he is atrocious on the defensive end.

The Rockets lost Dwight Howard leaving behind a poor legacy of an experiment gone wrong. They added Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon, two players that have struggled with injuries, but have shown that they can put the ball in the basket before. Houston is going to need those two to play like versions of themselves from a few years ago.

Houstons’ biggest edition was the hiring of Mike D’Antoni. For all of his problems in New York and Los Angeles, D’Antoni is an incredible offensive mastermind. He’ll make this offense faster and stronger, playing to their strengths.

Unfortunately for Houston, basketball has two sides to it and they could be really bad at one of them. Patrick Beverly and Trevor Ariza have the reputations of good defenders, but they have not been that lately. It’s well-known that Harden doesn’t care about stopping anyone and Anderson is bad at it too. With Howard gone, the Rockets are going to need sophomore Clint Capela to really step up.

With Harden running the point full-time for D’Antoni, the team will be better. The offense should give them a shot to beat any team. But there are serious questions surrounding their defense. Just on the strength of the best shooting guard in the league, they should be in the hunt for a playoff spot.

2016-17 Prediction: 45-37

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