In his first season with the Houston Rockets, James Harden has been the star player the team hoped for when they traded for him at the start of the year and now the forward will get the chance to exact revenge on his former team as the first round of the NBA playoffs get underway.
The Rockets have been one of the most consistent scoring teams in the league this season and finished ranked second in scoring with 106 points per game behind just the Denver Nuggets. The team ranked seventh in rebounding and sixth in in assists with over 23. The biggest issue for Houston will be on defense and with stopping Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, as the team allowed over 102 points per game, ranking 28th in the NBA.
The Rockets finished the season with a 45-37 record and third in the Southwest to earn the eighth seed and the team has played the Thunder three times this season, winning one game. In each of the three contests one team scored at least 120 points, including in the first game that saw 46 points from Harden in a Houston win. Harden is leading the team with 25 points per game, while Omer Asik is tops in rebounding with 11 per game, while Jeremy Lin leads the team in assists. The Rockets enter the playoffs after losing two straight, including the final game of the season against the Lakers that knocked them into the eighth spot against the Thunder instead of seventh against the Spurs.
Houston will have a tough matchup no matter what, as Oklahoma City is one of the most balanced teams in the nation, ranking third in scoring and ninth in points allowed with just 96 per game while averaging 105 themselves. The team ranks sixth in rebounding and 21st in assists after going 60-22 to finish first in the Northwest division over the Nuggets.
Kevin Durant led the team in scoring and finished just behind Carmelo Anthony for the scoring title, while Russell Westbrook led the team in assists and steals as Serge Ibaka was tops in blocks.