The Golden State Warriors, led by their veteran core of Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green, are well aware of the intensity that the Houston Rockets will present them with in their first-round matchup.
The Rockets, this season, have posted a 110.3 defensive rating, the fifth-best in the NBA, utilizing the length and versatility of their roster, featuring Amen Thompson, Tari Eason and Dillon Brooks, to stifle opposing offenses and propel themselves to the second seed in the Western Conference.
The Warriors will attempt to overcome this challenge through the pure offensive prowess of Curry, Butler and their surrounding scorers, but, especially given Rockets head coach Ime Udoka's recent comments, it will be a profound test nonetheless.
Rockets will throw everything but the kitchen sink at the Warriors
As reported by CBS Sports, Udoka recently described what he felt his roster's strongest asset to be, saying, "I think our versatility is one of our biggest strengths. We can go small, big, zone, and all the different things like that. It feels like we have a lot in our toolbox now."
The Rockets, in their most recent matchup with the Warriors, held them to a lowly 96 points, capturing the victory and stifling Curry almost entirely.
This was largely due to their willingness to and emphasis on sending two defenders to Curry, using athletic freak Amen Thompson as the primary defender and a rotating cast of help defenders to prevent Curry's off-ball movement and negate any spacing he might have benefitted from.
Within their routine starting lineup, the Rockets have a number of staunch on-ball defenders, providing a series of nightmare matchups for Golden State. Even Fred VanVleet, their smallest starter, is a solid defender and will provide problems for whatever Warriors guard he draws defensively.
Moreover, the Rockets also have a double big lineup, featuring Alperen Sengun and Steven Adams, that has been lethal in the few minutes they've seen together this season. While Curry's quickness and shooting abilities will limit the Rockets' opportunities to employ this lineup, it could be a major concern for the Warriors under the right circumstances.
If the Warriors go on a cold stretch from the perimeter, as they have been liable to do this season, the Rockets could move into a zone defense that could stifle any movement towards the rim.
While head coach Steve Kerr and his staff are certainly aware of the Rockets' versatility and are actively gameplanning against it, it is certain that it will present a major difficulty as Golden State attempts to advance to the second round.