Ever since Kevin Durant joined the Warriors in 2016, they have seemed unbeatable at times in the Western Conference. Is this the year that someone will put up a fight and stop them?
The Houston Rockets in the offseason added a big name in Chris Paul, there were many questions to if he and James Harden could play together. As of now, the critics should be silenced, as they are currently on a sixteen game win streak and tied for first place in the West.
The biggest piece of the puzzle has been James Harden who is having yet another MVP-caliber season. He is averaging 31 points, 8.9 assists, and 5.2 rebounds, while also shooting 45 percent from the field and 38 percent from the three-point line. Chris Paul was out with injury for part of the season but in the forty-five games he's played, he has been very effective. He's averaging 18.9 points per game with 8.9 assists. And as I said earlier the big question was, how can two ball-dominant players co-exist on a team? Just from the stats and the 50-13 record so far this season, I would say its working out well.
Can this team really take on the Golden State Warriors? In my opinion, yes. They have the supporting cast with Clint Capella, Trevor Ariza, Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson. Along with these guys, they also added a veteran pure scorer in Joe Johnson. This line-up is built to score and keep up with the fast-paced Warrior offense. The big question that they need to answer is can they defend, all though Harden is a great scorer, he has been known to slack off defensively. If the Rockets want any chance of competing for a title they need to be able to get stops when they need it the most. If this team can be successful from the three-point line and get big stops at the end of games, they have a legitimate shot at being contenders for an NBA Title.
