Houston Rockets all-star shooting guard James Harden ended the regular season as the NBA’s fifth-leading scorer (25.4 points per game) on a very respectable 45.6 percent shooting for the year.
Harden has kept up his scoring (22.5 points per game) through the Rockets’ first two games in the playoffs, but the efficiency certainly hasn’t been there. The Beard has shot a dismal 29.8 percent from the floor, including 26.3 percent from deep.
It’s difficult to pinpoint just what has caused this sudden drop off as Harden still seems to be getting to his spots. The ball just isn’t going down.
Some credit should go to the likes of Nicolas Batum, Wesley Matthews and Dorell Wright for getting up to bother Harden’s shot on D, but it isn’t like he’s never seen a competent defender before.
The Rockets are currently reeling, staring an 0-2 deficit in the face heading to Portland, where Oregonians will be smelling blood and targeting Harden, who’s shown some visible frustration of late.
Only three teams have ever climbed back after dropping their first two home games. If the Rockets want to buck history, Harden needs to be on as it’s clear that monster games from Dwight Howard won’t be enough.
Here are some other observations from Wednesday’s NBA playoff games:
Damian Killer
The Blazers’ Damian Lillard had a playoff debut to remember, putting up 31 points on 19 shots to go along with nine rebounds and five assists.
His encore, however, didn’t go quite as well, with the second-year stud shooting a poor 3-for-14 from the floor.
Despite those struggles, though, Lillard still finished with 18 points (mostly thanks to a 10-for-12 performance at the charity stripe), 11 assists and eight rebounds, demonstrating a resolve very few sophomore players possess.
As spectacular as LaMarcus Aldridge has been so far, Lillard has been the guy for the Trail Blazers when it’s mattered most.
In game one, after Aldridge fouled out in overtime, Lillard took over, scoring Portland’s next five points, including the go-ahead free throw. In game two, Lillard scored half of his points in the fourth quarter and drilled a pair of foul shots to ice the contest.
The term “killer instinct” is tossed around a lot in sports when it comes to stars. Where Damian Lillard is concerned, it’s well deserved.
Bobcats should shut Jefferson down
After the plantar fascia of his left foot “ripped all the way” after the first quarter of game two on Wednesday, it’s clear now that, no matter how heroic the effort may be, the Charlotte Bobcats must shut Al Jefferson down and save him from himself.
Charlotte got this far because of its decision to sign Jefferson in free agency. The risk he could do long-term, even permanent, damage to himself is far too great for both the Bobcats and Big Al to take on.
Jefferson played 40 minutes in game two, racking up a stunning 18 points and 13 rebounds. He’s proven his toughness and now, with his team down 0-2 to the two-time defending champion Miami Heat, it’s time to shut him down. The Bobcats simply won’t be winning this series when their best player only has one foot to stand on.
Dallas’s disruptive defence
When a team scores 33 points off 22 forced turnovers, they’re likely going to win.
That’s exactly what the Dallas Mavericks did to the Spurs on Wednesday, handing San Antonio its worst playoff loss since 2012.
Dallas wasn’t a great defensive team this season, surrendering 105.9 points per 100 possessions, but they were adept at forcing turnovers—opponents coughed up the ball 14.8 times per 100 possessions (good for fourth in the league).
That disruptive ability could be the key for the Mavericks in this series as San Antonio just barely took care of the ball at just about a league-average rate this year.
Heading home tied 1-1, the Mavs will need to exploit this small chink in the Spurs’ armour and do everything they can to force San Antonio into errant passes and poor decisions.
Vintage Ginobili
It’s a real shame game two went the way it did, because Manu Ginobili was straight-up ballin’.
The Argentine veteran turned back the clock and had one of those vintage mid-2000s Ginobili games, scoring 27 points on a remarkably efficient 9-of-12 shooting, including a 5-of-6 night from the land beyond.
Unfortunately, it’s a rare occurrence nowadays to see Ginobili go off the way he did on Tuesday (even if he did cough up the ball a game-high six times).