After an entertaining seven-game homestand, the Houston Rockets hit the road with their show and six-game winning streak.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve seen that James Harden is now a member of the Los Angeles Clippers. You also saw that they haven’t won a game in the James Harden era (0-5), while the Philadelphia 76ers have continued their own winning ways.
Well, I’m here to say that the Clippers are too good, with too much talent, to continue struggling to get wins. And with Houston heading to LA’s home, you know the Clips will be forced to end their own losing streak and make a statement to the rest of the league. The Rockets have been off for four days, which is nice, but the Clippers have been off for two days, so the advantage is essentially negated.
In case you need a refresher, the Clippers have Harden, Russell Westbrook, PJ Tucker and Daniel Theis (who will clear waivers today but likely won’t play tonight) on their roster. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George still form the core of the team, along with Ivica Zubac. Terance Mann and Norman Powell come off the bench and can light up the scoreboard.
One final note: Harden has already played games against the Rockets since his trade to the Nets, but tonight is his first chance to show Ime Udoka that he made a mistake by passing him to Fred VanVleet. Rockets fans are happy with how the whole situation has turned out, but I wonder if The Beard will take tonight’s game a little more personally.
Tip off
9:30 PM CT
How to watch
Space City home network
Injuries
Missiles
Amen Thompson-OUT (single)
Hair clippers
Mason Plumlee-OUT (knee)
Looking ahead because you can
Sunday in Los Angeles against the Lakers
