“I don’t care if you are 7 feet”: James Harden takes a shot at LeBron James and Lakers after small-ball wins Game 1

Samir Mehdi | 05/09/2020
James Harden takes a shot at Lakers

James Harden takes shots at Lakers, “If you don’t have heart, it doesn’t matter”, after a brilliant Game 1 win in the playoff series. 

Head Coach of the Houston Rockets, Mike D’Antoni and General Manager Daryl Morey went all in on the Houston small ball experiment when they traded away young big man Clint Capela to the Atlanta Hawks, to acquire 6’7 Robert Covington from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Also Read: LeBron James’ 4th quarter stats vs Rockets were abysmal to say the least

So far, the experiment looks like it’s working as Houston beats the Lakers in Game 1 in a blowout, 112-97 win.

James Harden believes in his small ball lineup.

In his postgame presser, Harden fired back at comments about the Houston Rockets being undersized against the Los Angeles Lakers.

2 of the biggest concerns people had for the Rockets, coming into this series against the Lakers was rebounding and their defense.

Would the Rockets be able to grab enough boards to acquire second chance points and and also to convert on a Lakers missed basket? Would the Rockets be able to guard Lakers bigs such as Anthony Davis, Dwight Howard, Javale McGee and even, 6’8 Lebron James?

Houston responded to both these concerns in Game 1.

How well do the Houston Rockets match up against the Los Angeles Lakers?

To keep it plain and simple, Houston has been great on defense in the postseason this year.

It was actually noted that PJ Tucker has statistically been the best defender Anthony Davis has faced all season long.

Tucker definitely showed his defensive chops against Davis tonight.

PJ Tucker and Russell Westbrook are known to have that “dog mentality” Harden was talking about in his interview.

Robert Covington has also been great at defense, notching in a couple blocks each game while also applying pressure on the opposing big.

In terms of rebounds, the Lakers and the Rockets both notched 41 rebounds in tonight’s bout.

Post Edited By: Utkarsh Bhatla
hoston rockets James Harden Los Angeles Lakers PJ Tucker Russell Westbrook

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Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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