Golden State Warriors executed a flawless game plan vs Houston Rockets
The Golden State Warriors somehow won their Christmas Day showdown at home against the Houston Rockets in shocking fashion.
There’s no denying this season for the Golden State Warriors has been a struggle.
They’ve won just eight games which include this recent three-game win streak, having lost 24 in total as well. However, they proved that they can hang with the West’s best in their 12-point home Christmas Day victory.
They were able to defeat the Rockets behind a virtually flawless gameplan.
The Warriors gameplan wasn’t overly complicated. They forced anyone not named James Harden to beat them, and at the end of the day, the supporting cast just couldn’t find success. The Rockets shot 16-for-51 from deep.
The bulk of the responsibility fell on Russell Westbrook, who ended with a team-high 30 points. Westbrook poured in the 30 points on 32 shots while the Dubs leading scorer, Damion Lee, scored 22 points on a mere nine shots.
That was the difference in the game. The Warriors needed to see that in order to have any chance even with a roaring crowd at the Chase Center.
As soon as Harden crossed the court, on the bulk of the Rockets’ halfcourt possessions, the Warriors sent a double team. They were getting the ball initially out of Harden’s hands and making him relocate to find it again.
That typically forced the ball into Russell Westbrook’s hands. Then, it would also typically result in a Westbrook shot, one reason he had 32% of the team’s attempts from the field. The Rockets lost by 12 yet outshot the Warriors by 13.
That combination isn’t something you see every day.
With no Eric Gordon, teams will start to do exactly what Golden State did. However, it wasn’t just the poor offense by Westbrook and company but the excellent offense by Golden State. The Warriors shot 47% from the field and almost 90% from the free-throw line, taking 28 attempts.
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Get the ball out of Harden’s hands, make Westbrook beat you and hope the supporting cast cannot support the rest of the offense — if those things happen, a team can easily beat Houston, and the Warriors proved that on Christmas Day.