The Houston Rockets were feeling themselves after a huge win against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night in a marquee matchup between the top two teams in the Western Conference. And for good reason.
The Rockets have now moved to 17-0 on the season when their trio of James Harden, Chris Paul, and Clint Capela all share the court, making them arguably one of the most dominant super teams in the league.
And though it’s just one regular-season game, Houston believes the victory bodes well for their chances against Golden State in the postseason. Rockets forward P.J. Tucker was feeling particularly confident about their prospects after the victory.
Via Sam Amick of USA TODAY Sports:
“We’ve got the perfect team (to combat the Warriors),” said veteran forward P.J. Tucker said, who was added during the summer via free agency with the Warriors in mind. They’re such a good team, that we’ve got to match them and be able to come out with them.
“It’s our confidence in each other (driving them). That’s how we talk. That’s our language, our lingo. We come in her today, and it’s ‘Hey fellas, it’s another game. Let’s go out here and compete, and battle, and do things we’re supposed to do so that by the end of the season, going into the postseason, we’ve got that swagger. We’ve got that feeling that we know that we can go out here and play against anybody.”
One of the main questions for any team going against the Warriors is whether they have enough offensive firepower to keep up, and with the Rockets, that’s a resounding yes. Of course, they also have to be able to defend, which has been the Achilles heel of this Rockets team in the past and Mike D’Antoni-led squads in general. But Houston has shown tremendous progress on that end.
Still, the playoffs will be a vastly different story. The Warriors have been afflicted with a post-championship malaise all season long, and a loss like this to a conference rival could be the wake-up call they need to make a strong second-half push and start cleaning up some areas in anticipation of the looming postseason, which should offer more challenges this year than it did last.
