Who's Playing
Matchup: Oklahoma City Thunder vs Houston Rockets
Records: Thunder (35-19); Rockets (32-22)
Where to Watch
Date: Sunday, Feb. 10
Time: 7:00 AM
TV: Sony Ten 1 & Sony Ten 3
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, TX
Game Preview
Just like their season, the Oklahoma City Thunder have bounced back from a rough start to their new year.
The Thunder were struggling early on, going 4-5 in their first nine games in January with a defensive rating ranked 23rd in the league over these games. Since then, they've ripped off 10 wins in 11 games with Russell Westbrook recording a triple-double in the last eight games:
In fact, the 2016-17 league MVP has been averaging a triple-double through 46 games - 21.2 points, 11.2 assists (led the league), and 11.1 rebounds.
Meanwhile, fellow All-Star Paul George is having a career year himself, recording career-highs in points (28.0), rebounds (7.9), and steals (2.3 - leading the league) while recording near career-highs in field-goal percentage (45.0%), assists (4.0), and 3-point shooting (40.8%).
Despite the great success for the Thunder so far, they could get even better.
Their defensive rating of 104.8 (3rd-best) is without their great perimeter defender in Andre Roberson, who is reportedly set to return in a couple of weeks. Westbrook's shooting improving would also massively help the Thunder. He's currently shooting a career-low 64.3% from the free-throw line while shooting 24.8% from beyond the three-point arc (lowest since 2010).
OKC's opponents on Sunday - the Houston Rockets, have had a revival of their own.
On Dec. 9, the Rockets were 14th in the Western Conference with a 11-14 record but since then, led by the reigning MVP James Harden, Houston has won 21 of the next 29 games (72.4%). That's the third-best winning percentage in that time span.
In the last 28 games, Harden has scored 30+ points, a streak not achieved in the NBA since the merger with the ABA. Not only has he resurrected the team's season but he's also massively strengthened his chances to be named as a back-to-back MVP.
Now, Harden has slowly welcomed back all of his teammates from their respective injuries and the squad is almost full healthy.
For the Rockets, this is their first game back home after a 4-game road trip when they went 3-1.
Game Notes
- The Rockets have a home record of 19-8 and have won 15 of their last 18 games at the Toyota Center.
- The Thunder have a road record of 13-14.
- Houston will definitely miss Clint Capela (Thumb) for this game while Daniel House Jr. is considered a game-time decision.
- On the other hand, the Thunder will be missing the duo of Alex Abrines (Personal) and Andre Roberson (Kneecap).
Last Time They Played
Date: Dec. 26, 2018
Score: Thunder 109-113 Rockets
Thunder: Russell Westbrook - 21 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists, and 4 steals.
Rockets: James Harden - 41 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds.
