James Harden heard the boos, and by the time fans started heading for the exits with 10 minutes to play, the Celtics had opened a 29-point lead on his Rockets. At least one fan offered a disingenuous M-V-P chant. Did we mention the game was in Houston?
Maybe such a scene should be expected inside Toyota Center the way this season has started. It's understandable, at least, after the Rockets teased with a quick 13-point first-quarter lead, and were at least tied at 55 at the half, before closing with a familiar 111-95 blowout loss. Houston is 2-5 at home so far, having been outscored by an average of 15.2 points in each loss, and hasn't held an opponent under 100 points all season.
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A 15-0 run by the Celtics — their second of the game — to end the third quarter was the source of most of the boos Monday. The 32-point quarter helped Boston (6-4) go up 87-68, and the Rockets didn't come within double digits from there.
Harden finished with 16 points on 8-of-17 shooting, and he's hitting at a 37.2 percent clip from field-goal range on the year. But it's clear now Houston's problems go beyond last year's MVP runner up; no team with Dwight Howard as its center should, on paper, be this bad defensively. Point guard Ty Lawson has also played short of expectations.
So why is a 56-win team from a year ago 4-7? It seems to boil down to an effort problem, according to CBS's "Eye on Basketball."
Heading into Monday, per CBS, the Rockets were ranked 28th in defensive rebound percentage; 28th in second-chance points; 25th in put-back points per possession allowed; 25th in opponent field-goal attempts in the restricted area per game; and 29th in opponent field-goal percentage at the rim.
Those are numbers are worthy of boos.
Sixers made you look
Well, they almost had it. The winless 76ers (0-11) traded leads with the Mavericks (7-4) for the better part of the fourth quarter, but Dallas eventually distanced itself to close out a 92-86 win. Dirk Nowitzki and Chandler Parsons paced the Mavs with 21 and 20 points, respectively, to avoid the distinction as Philadelphia's first victim.
In more encouraging news, the past two No. 3 overall draft picks, Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel, finished with double-doubles. Okafor scored 19 points with 11 rebounds and Noel finished with 12 and 12. PSA: Poor, graying Sixers coach Brett Brown is now 37-138 in the NBA.
Hang in there, Sixers. You play the Rockets in a few weeks.
Stud of the night
A handcuffed Mario Chalmers asked out of Miami a few weeks ago, and it's paying off. His jailbreak reached its climax when, coming off the bench, he scored 29 points on 10-of-20 shooting in the Grizzlies' 122-114 win over the Kevin Durant-less Thunder (6-5).
It was easily Chalmers' best performance so far in Memphis (6-6) as he's eased into the lineup, and were it not for Russell Westbrook's ninth double-double (40 points, 14 assists, eight turnovers), he'd have been the brightest star on the floor.
Dud of the night
Even without Kobe Bryant, the Lakers are bad. That statement shouldn't make sense, but it does, and it showed in a 120-101 loss in Phoenix after leaving a sore Bryant behind in LA. Bryant's absence, as always, meant more ball time for Lakers (2-9) youngsters, but no one in particular stepped up. And nobody could stop Brandon Knight, who became the fifth player this season to record a triple-double with 30 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds for the Suns (6-4).
Highlights
Okafor's block-turnover sequence might be the most Sixers thing ever.
Proof that it was that kind of "Knight" for the Lakers and point guard Marcelo Huertas.
Looking ahead (All times Eastern)
Cavaliers (8-2) at Pistons (5-5), 7:30 p.m.: Andre Drummond, perhaps the NBA's hottest player outside California, pits his NBA-leading 19.0 rebounds per game against the LeBron James Kevin Love Show, with Cleveland coming off a tough double-OT loss to the Bucks. Drummond also leads the league with 10 double-doubles and can announce himself (and the Pistons) as a force in the East with a statement win over the reigning conference champs.
Raptors (7-4) at Warriors (11-0), 10:30 p.m.: How long before the defending champs lose a game? All indications are that it could be a while, as Stephen Curry and Co. are off to the hottest start any team has had in almost 20 years. They'll face a Raptors team that has taken an on-again-off-again approach to begin the season — won five, lost three, won two, lost again. Fresh off a bad loss to the drama-filled Kings, Toronto plays Game 2 in its five-game West Coast road trip.
