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

The Golden State Warriors had another eventful week, beating the Cavaliers and Bulls but losing to the Rockets and snapping their 14-game road win streak.

Always entertaining, the NBA, isn’t it?

I couldn’t stop laughing when the news broke about Chris Paul leading the Rockets into the Clippers locker room through a secret tunnel to fight the Clippers. That was the same night the Golden State Warriors beat the Cavaliers on MLK Day in a Finals rematch.

Five days later, the Rockets — with Paul and James Harden not suspended for their roles in the altercation — defeated the Warriors at home to raise some eyebrows about whether the Warriors actually have a challenger in the West. Well, at least Clint Capela thinks so.

So we went from the Warriors beating the Cavs, meaning the Cavs are trash, to the Rockets beating the Warriors, which means the Rockets are beating the Warriors in the playoffs. Right?

Here are some things I liked and didn’t like.

Things I Liked

Beating the Cavs. This was as gratifying a win as the Warriors have had all season. First of all, you saw Kevin Durant do this:

And Stephen Curry do this:

And second, the game was a clear sign that the Cavs, as presently constructed, do not have nearly enough to topple the Warriors. Without Kyrie Irving, Cleveland is missing a key part of its 2016 championship roster. Isaiah Thomas doesn’t look 100 percent — and even when he gets there, he’s not close to bringing the star power and skill set that Kyrie did.

It’s why the Cavs are reportedly going after big names on the trade block such as DeAndre Jordan, Lou Williams and George Hill. They know their window with LeBron and the rest of this veteran group might be shutting, and they’ll only get so many shots at the Warriors in the Finals — their chances this year are looking slimmer and slimmer as the season drags on.

I don’t think any addition short of a bona fide star is going to change much in the matchup. The Warriors are three, four, five levels ahead. They dominated last year’s Finals, and this season, the disparity is even larger.

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Steph an All-Star captain. There’s no question that Steph remains one of the most popular players in the game, and this is just a re-affirmation. I feel like I do this is a lot, but if you told me a decade ago that the Warriors would have one of the first All-Star Game captains, I literally would not have believed you, even if you bet your life on it.

Kevon Looney and David West. I’m giving a shoutout to perhaps two of the Warriors’ most surprising bench contributors this season. I thought Looney was too raw and didn’t have a future on this team. I thought West’s production might slow after turning a year older and finally clinching a championship.

I was wrong. Looney has shown so many promising signs this season, and continues to develop as a young center. The Warriors may regret not picking up his option and letting him leave as a free agent after this season. Looney has become more mobile, finishing around the rim and he’s also starting to hit his free throws. With this team, that’s all you need to do as a big man to be productive.

West is fun to watch. His midrange jumper is automatic. He bullies his way inside. He’s far better than he was even last season, shooting at over a 60 percent clip. Oh, and he’s 37 years old. The Warriors are blessed to have this man on their team.

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.