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The Philadelphia 76ers travelled to the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas to face the Houston Rockets. Prior to the game, the Philadelphia 76ers were 4th in the Eastern Conference with a 41-24 record, and the Houston Rockets were 4th with a 39-25 record.
The Houston Rockets came out on top after a superb performance, winning the game 107-91.
Let us look at the 3 biggest talking points from this game.
#3 The Houston Rockets are finally rolling
The Houston Rockets are finally here and they look like they are going to stay. The Rockets had a really bad start to their season and were not looking like contenders. They lost Chris Paul to a bunch of injuries and then Clint Capela went down too with a thumb injury.
That led to some insane scoring performances by James Harden, who slowly and steadily started leading the team, and got them back into playoff contention. Now, with Capela and Paul back and firing, and players like Gordon also getting into his groove, the Rockets are again a force to deal with.
They have shot up the standings to the 3rd spot, with a 40-25 record, and have leapfrogged both the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Portland Trail Blazers. In the win over the 76ers, Chris Paul had a bad night, scoring just 4 points in 28 minutes, but he dished out 8 assists and had 2 steals along with 3 rebounds.
Clint Capela had a solid night, scoring 18 points in 29 minutes on an impressive 67% from the field. He even had 9 rebounds and grabbed 4 steals. Eric Gordon had a good game, scoring an efficient 17 points, hitting 5 triples as well. James Harden again had a solid outing, scoring 31 points in 32 minutes, shooting 50% from the field, and had 10 rebounds, along with 7 assists and 2 steals.
If the Rockets stay fit and keep their solid 7 game winning streak going, they might even go up further in the standings.
#2 The Philadelphia 76ers really miss Joel Embiid
The Philadelphia 76ers were having a superb 2018-19 NBA season and are still having a good one. They are currently 4th in the Eastern Conference with a 41-25 record and are looking to make a run for the 3rd spot, currently held by the Indiana Pacers.
The injury to Joel Embiid has made things really dicey for them, as they do not want to rush their injury prone star back too soon. But without Embiid, they have really been a mess, losing 4 of their 8 games, 3 of which came against big teams such as the Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets and the Portland Trail Blazers.
Embiid has been averaging 27.3 points per game this season, along with 13.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists a game. He is also averaging 1.9 blocks a game and is shooting 48% from the field. With Embiid gone, the 76ers are missing a big man who can really score for them when they need it the most, and without Embiid, they just do not have a good enough backup center who can jump in whenever Embiid needs rest.
The 76ers really need him back soon as the playoffs draw closer and closer.
#1 James Harden can't stop scoring
James Harden has probably cemented his name as one of the best scorers and shooting guards this league has ever seen. He has been absolutely phenomenal all season long, leading the Rockets from the front as the players around him all succumbed to injuries or poor form. He has really taken away most of the talk surrounding Giannis Antetokounmpo as the MVP and made it about himself again, and has a real shot of winning back to back MVPs.
Harden has scored a monstrous 36.6 points per game this season, a gear nobody thought Harden had. He is also dishing out 7.5 assists a game, play-making in the absence of Chris Paul, and 6.5 rebounds per game as well. He made a new record in the league for scoring 30 points or more for 31 consecutive games, a streak that is only behind the great Wilt Chamberlain.
He has gone above and beyond this season for the Rockets, and against the Philadelphia 76ers, he again got them going, scoring 31 points in just 32 minutes, and shooting 50% from the field. He had himself a double double, grabbing 10 rebounds, and even managed to dish out 7 assists. He also got himself 2 steals, which showed his prowess on the defensive end as well.
He sat out longer due to the blowout nature of the game, but reports have emerged that he is suffering from a sore wrist. The Rockets need him playing at his best during the playoffs, and might even be able to snare home court advantage if he keeps playing this way.
