Monday Musings: No, the Rockets aren’t better than the Warriors

Things I Didn’t Like

Rockets game. This game was bulletin board material if you want to hate on the Warriors. The Rockets, a legitimate team that may actually win a game (or two) against the Warriors in a playoff series, beat the Warriors — who, by the way, were playing on the road, the last of a five-game road trip.

Yes, the Warriors made plenty of mistakes. Curry committed a few uncharacteristic errors:

And yes, the Rockets went after Curry defensively late, as Eric Gordon noted:

"“We always try to go after the weakest link, so when he’s out there and they go very small, we always put him in the pick-and-roll. It was funny seeing him guard [PJ] Tucker. Then next thing you know, Tucker’s starting to make big plays at the end. We always try to take advantage of that, for sure.”"

But let’s chill, Clint Capela. Let’s chill.

No, the Rockets are not better than the Warriors. Do they present problems? Absolutely. Any time you put Chris Paul, an elite ball-handler and passer, with James Harden, a supreme offensive talent, there are going to be problems. And when shooters like Gordon and Ryan Anderson are going, the Rockets can look Warriors-esque at times. In another era, perhaps this Rockets team would be dominating the league.

But not now. The Warriors, when engaged and healthy, are unbeatable. They were healthy on Saturday (minus Jordan Bell), but not fully engaged. Now, that isn’t good at all, but that won’t mean much come playoff time. They were just a few lapses and plays away from winning on Saturday.

I fully expect for Steve Kerr to figure out a way for his gluttony of stars to beat the Rockets’ 1-2 punch if they meet in the playoffs. Both Paul and Harden can be exploited on the other end, and the Warriors need to figure out a way to hide Curry on defense. For now, the storyline from this game is still “What did the Warriors do wrong” and not “Are the Rockets better than the Warriors”? Not quite, Clint. Not quite.