Tag: Garrison Mathews

Jalen Green improves, but Blazers send Rockets to 10th straight home loss

Christian Wood had big numbers and rookie guard Jalen Green showed some improvement from his recent slump, but it wasn’t enough for the Rockets to avoid a 10th straight home loss.

Prized rookie Jalen Green entered Friday in a massive slump for the Houston Rockets, averaging just 5.7 points and 1.3 assists in his last three games on 15.0% shooting and 11.8% on 3-pointers.

The good news is that he showed some signs of improvement versus Portland, tallying 17 points and 5 assists while getting to the free-throw line a team-high nine times. The bad news is that it was still not enough to win, with Houston losing to Portland, 125-110 (box score). The Rockets have now lost 10 straight home games at Toyota Center.

Christian Wood led the Rockets with 21 points (52.9% FG), 15 rebounds, and 2 blocks on Friday, while Garrison Mathews matched him for the team’s scoring lead with 21 points on 4-of-8 from 3-point range (50.0%). But outside of Mathews, the Rockets made just 6-of-33 on 3-pointers (18.2%), which was not nearly good enough versus a Trail Blazers squad that hit 17-of-39 from behind the 3-point arc (43.6%).

Portland’s starting backcourt of Anfernee Simons and CJ McCollum combined to score 53 points, including 9-of-18 on 3-pointers (50.0%). That nearly matched Houston’s total of 10 treys as a team. Veteran big man Jusuf Nurkic added 25 points and 13 rebounds on the interior.

KJ Martin scored a season-high 17 points off Houston’s bench on 8-of-11 shooting (72.7%), and the second unit’s energy — sparked by Martin and rookie guard Josh Christopher (11 points, 55.6% FG, 3 assists in 20 minutes) — helped the Rockets close the deficit to as little as four points in the fourth quarter. But they were unable to get over the hump.

The Rockets were short-handed for the game, with starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. unavailable due to health and safety protocols.

Houston continues its four-game homestand with a visit from Golden State on Monday night. Until then, scroll on for highlights and postgame reaction following Friday’s busy night at Toyota Center.

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Final 2022 NBA All-Star votes for the Houston Rockets

Four NBA players voted reserve guard DJ Augustin as an All-Star, while John Wall — who has yet to play this season — also had a player vote. Here’s a rundown of how all Rockets fared.

Entering Friday, the Rockets (14-34) possessed the worst record in the Western Conference. Thus, in a rebuilding season, it should come as no surprise that Houston’s young squad will not have a player representative at the 2022 NBA All-Star Game.

Nonetheless, in a hybrid format weighting votes from fans, a media panel, and players, the Rockets did still have many players receiving votes. Fans accounted for 50 percent of the vote to determine the starters, which were announced Thursday, while players and media accounted for 25 percent each. Reserves will be named next week.

Though no Houston player received votes from the media panel, it’s become clear over the years of this voting process that many fans and players will go by personal favorites, rather than true basketball merit. Even John Wall, who has not played in a single game this season as part of a mutual decision, received votes from fans and even a player!

Here’s a rundown of how each Houston player fared in regards to votes from fans and players (none received any from media).

After John Hollinger tweet, Garrison Mathews defends his shooting form

“That’s how I shot my whole life,” Garrison Mathews said in response to criticism over his shooting form. “If somebody goes out there and shoots a 30-footer, they’re going to jump forward.”

Houston Rockets guard Garrison Mathews is quickly establishing himself as one of the NBA’s best 3-point shooters, particularly from extreme range, and others around the league are starting to notice.

That includes critics, as well. After practice Sunday, Mathews defended himself against The Athletic’s senior NBA columnist John Hollinger, who suggested that Mathews (and/or others trying to imitate him) could use an exaggerated shooting motion on 3-pointers for the potential purpose of drawing “landing space” fouls as flagrants.

As part of his commentary, Hollinger tweeted a video clip involving Mathews and Golden State’s Andrew Wiggins, who had a defensive foul upgraded to a Flagrant 1 during Friday’s game after not allowing proper landing space to the shooter on a deep 3-point attempt.

“I saw some tweet today about somebody getting upset about how far I jump forward on my shot,” Mathews responded from Toyota Center. “That’s how I shot my whole life. If somebody goes out there and shoots a 30-footer, they’re going to jump forward. It’s hard to get it there. I don’t change the way I shoot. I definitely don’t try to jump into people or jump forward like that. It’s the way it comes out, I guess.”

Mathews went on to say that no one has ever tried to change his form because he has always been a decent shooter. He is currently shooting 37.7% on 3-pointers, second on the Rockets behind Eric Gordon, and that clip is even more impressive when considering how far behind the 3-point arc that many of his shots are released from. As a result, Mathews often uses power from his legs to get the ball to the basket.

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Steph Curry beats buzzer as Warriors rally past Christian Wood, Rockets

Perennial All-Star and MVP candidate Steph Curry hit the first buzzer-beater of his storied NBA career on Friday night, lifting the host Warriors to a 105-103 victory ( box score) over the visiting Rockets. Curry shot just 6-of-21 (28.6%), but he …

Perennial All-Star and MVP candidate Steph Curry hit the first buzzer-beater of his storied NBA career on Friday night, lifting the host Warriors to a 105-103 victory (box score) over the visiting Rockets.

Curry shot just 6-of-21 (28.6%), but he finished with 22 points and 12 assists and came through when Golden State needed him most. Houston led for most of the game but did not score in the final three minutes.

Christian Wood (19 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks) and Kevin Porter Jr. (17 points, 8 assists, 4 steals) led the way for Houston, but each missed a 3-pointer in the final 65 seconds that would have put the Rockets in front. Wood was brilliant for most of his 34 minutes, shooting 7-of-13 from the field (53.8%) and 3-of-5 on 3-pointers (60.0%).

Rookie guard Jalen Green struggled mightily with 3 points on 0-of-11 shooting and had a crucial turnover late in the game. But in contrast to Wednesday, head coach Stephen Silas allowed the 19-year-old to close the game on Friday, using it as a learning experience.

After shooting 22-of-45 on 3-pointers (48.9%) in Wednesday’s thrilling win at Utah, that performance slipped to 10-of-35 on Friday (28.6%), and that gap proved significant. Garrison Mathews hit 2-of-5 from 3-point range, but one of those misses was a clean look in the final seconds prior to Curry’s walk-off winner from the top of the key.

For the Rockets (14-33), Friday’s heartbreaker ends a long five-game road trip at 3-2. In the grand scheme, that should be viewed as a success for a rebuilding season. Yet, the result will be painful after having a golden opportunity slip away versus an elite opponent like the Warriors, who own the second-best record in the Western Conference at 33-13.

Houston will now have an extended break, likely featuring ample practice time, before kicking off a four-game homestand with Tuesday’s matchup versus San Antonio at Toyota Center. For now, scroll on for highlights and postgame reaction from Friday’s tough loss at Golden State.

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Anatomy of an upset: The biggest plays from Houston’s win at Utah

The young and rebuilding Rockets weren’t supposed to win at Utah, but led by the likes of Kevin Porter Jr. and Garrison Mathews, they found a way. Here’s a look back at their biggest plays.

Young and rebuilding teams like the 2021-22 Rockets aren’t supposed to beat perceived Western Conference contenders, and especially not on the road. But that’s exactly what Houston (14-32) somehow managed to do at Utah (29-16) on Wednesday night in Salt Lake City.

For the Rockets, who had five players score in double figures as part of a balanced effort, it was a third win in their last four games — all away from home. Sharpshooter Garrison Mathews led the way in the 116-111 win (box score) with a team-high 23 points off the bench, including 5-of-9 on 3-pointers (55.6%). But he had plenty of help, as well.

Veterans Bojan Bogdanovic (29 points, 5 rebounds), Rudy Gobert (23 points, 9 rebounds), and Jordan Clarkson (19 points, 4 assists) led the Jazz, but it wasn’t enough to keep pace. After putting up 5 points in the first five-plus minutes of the second half, Houston exploded to score 54 in under 19 minutes to finish it out, leading to a shocking road win.

Here’s a look back at some of the key plays and sequences from Wednesday in Salt Lake City. We’re largely focusing on offense, since the Rockets have risen from an offensive rating of 104.6 in their first six January games — good for No. 24 in the NBA over that span — to 115.5 over the current 3-1 road trip, which ranks No. 6 in the league in that run.

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Garrison Mathews launches Rockets to third win in four games

Rockets coach Stephen Silas trusted Garrison Mathews down the stretch in Utah, and it paid off. “It is very important as a shooter to just keep your confidence, all the time.”

Former Houston Rockets coach and Hall of Famer Rudy Tomjanovich once told reporters that he would tell the team’s very best shooters, if they ever felt like they were in a shooting slump, to just keep shooting.

“Rudy T” could have passed that advice on when he met with second-year Rockets coach Stephen Silas last month, hours before a celebratory ceremony at Toyota Center to honor his Hall of Fame induction. In turn, Silas may have whispered it to guard Garrison Mathews at some point in the last few days to help him with his recent shooting woes.

Mathews, 25, had a terrible three-game stretch from Jan. 10 through Jan. 14 where he averaged 1.6 points and shot 1-for-11 from 3-point range, with that one make coming in the first game versus Philadelphia. Mathews was held scoreless for the first time all season in his next game at San Antonio, and he followed that performance up with another scoreless night in the first game of two in Sacramento.

Even though he was in a horrific shooting slump, Mathews never lost confidence in his 3-point shot, which earned him a four-year contract with the Rockets earlier this season. In a 118-112 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday, Mathews finally broke out of his funk with 17 points on 4-of-6 shooting (66.7%) from 3-point range.

Then, with Houston needing a spark on Wednesday as an underdog in Utah, Mathews tied his career-high with 23 points and shot 5-for-9 (55.6%) on 3-pointers. That launched the Rockets to a 116-111 victory at Vivint Arena, giving Houston (14-32) a third win in its last four games.

“When you have a good shooting game, your confidence starts to build back up,” Mathews said postgame to reporters. “I had a tough few games, but that is just going to happen. The main thing for me is to not get so high or too low. When you are a shooter, you are going to have games like that or little stretches like that, but it is very important as a shooter to just keep your confidence all the time.”

Mathews gained the confidence of his coach on Monday night as he played 19 straight minutes off the bench to end the game. That would also seem to be an excellent indicator that Mathews has fully recovered from the time he missed due to COVID-related issues.

“He was so good, it was hard to take him out of the game,” said Silas, who kept Mathews in to close out Wednesday’s win while leaving highly touted rookie Jalen Green on the bench. “I was definitely concerned. I was waiting on a time he looked like he was running out of gas. He didn’t show that, so I kept him in the game. He fought defensively. He made big shots. It was hard to get him out of the game.”

Though the Rockets are 3-1 on their current five-game road trip, they will get a better gauge for how much improvement they’ve made when they face the Golden State Warriors (32-12) on Friday to finish it off.

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Trade deadline data: Houston Rockets player salaries for 2021-22, future seasons

With the Feb. 10 trade deadline rapidly approaching, here’s an updated look at who the Houston Rockets have on their salary books — and for how long.

With the Feb. 10 trade deadline for the 2021-22 NBA season rapidly approaching, here’s an updated look at who Houston has on its salary books. This list includes recent signings such as Trevelin Queen and no longer includes Danuel House Jr., who was waived in December.

As of Jan. 15, Garrison Mathews is the only player on the Rockets who is not eligible to be traded by the deadline. That’s because his new standard contract was not signed until late December.

As a result, general manager Rafael Stone heads into the deadline period with substantial flexibility. With the Rockets in the middle of a clear rebuilding program, they’re in a clear spot where veterans like Eric Gordon, Daniel Theis, David Nwaba, and perhaps even John Wall could be sent elsewhere to teams with more of a win-now emphasis.

Courtesy of the HoopsHype salary database, here’s a look at who Stone has on Houston’s books entering the Feb. 10 trade deadline. This list is sorted by annual salary, ranging from the most to the least.

Since nearly all NBA teams or at or above the salary cap during the season, teams have to send out close to much money in deadline trades as they take in, owing to the league’s collective bargaining agreement.

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In blowout home loss to Dallas, Rockets allow 130 or more points for fourth time in 10 games

Houston is 1-9 in its last 10 games, and defense continues to be the main reason. Including Friday’s blowout home loss to Dallas, they’ve allowed 130 or more points in four of those games.

Tim Hardaway Jr. scored a team-high 19 points and hit 5-of-10 (50.0%) on 3-pointers, leading a balanced Dallas effort on Friday night as the short-handed Mavericks cruised to a 130-106 win (box score) at Houston.

The Mavericks (21-18) won their fifth straight game with ease, even with big names like Luka Doncic (right ankle sprain) and Kristaps Porzingis (health and safety protocols) sidelined. Dallas had six players score in double figures and had a combined 67 points from its reserves.

The Rockets (11-29) had five players score in double figures and were led Friday by Christian Wood’s 20 points (61.5% FG) in 24 minutes, but Houston allowed a whopping 80 points in the first half and appeared completely uncompetitive on the defensive end. They were also crushed by Dallas in the rebounding battle by a 67-46 margin.

The Rockets have now given up 130 or more points in six games during the 2021-22 season, and four of those have come within the last 10 games. Not coincidentally, they are 1-9 in that period.

On offense, Jae’Sean Tate and Garrison Mathews scored 15 points apiece, while young guards Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. scored 12 and 11 points, respectively, with each shooting 4-of-8 from the field (50.0%).

The Rockets will continue their three-game homestand with a visit from Minnesota on Sunday, with tipoff scheduled for 6:00 p.m. CST. Until then, scroll on for highlights and postgame reaction from Friday, with particular attention paid to Houston’s ongoing struggles on defense.

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Rockets at Wizards: Prediction, point spread, odds, over/under, betting picks

With eight straight losses, Houston (+7.5) is understandably a moderate underdog at Washington, which enters off a big win over Charlotte.

The Houston Rockets finish a brief two-game road trip on the East Coast with Wednesday’s visit to Washington, and if you’re looking to do some last-minute betting research, you’re in luck! We’ve got the latest point spread, money line odds and over/under number, as well as all the information you need to make the smartest bets at Tipico Sportsbook.

The Rockets-Wizards game tips at 6 p.m. CST and can be viewed or streamed via AT&T SportsNet Southwest and NBA League Pass.

With recently suspended starters Kevin Porter Jr. and Christian Wood presumably back in the lineup, Houston is hoping to snap an eight-game losing streak. But it won’t come easy against the host Wizards, who are coming off an impressive win on Monday versus Charlotte in which Bradley Beal and Kyle Kuzma combined for 71 points.

In their most recent loss at Philadelphia, the Rockets benefited from a very strong return by former Wizards wing Garrison Mathews, who had missed the prior four games while in the NBA’s health and safety protocols. However, it was offset by an unusually cold game by rookie Jalen Green, who shot just 25% overall and 20% on 3-pointers.

For Mathews, Wednesday’s game could be a revenge opportunity of sorts, since the 25-year-old played his first two NBA seasons there but ultimately was not re-signed after the 2020-21 campaign.

Rockets at Wizards: Wednesday’s lineups, injury reports, broadcast and stream info

Wednesday’s game is the first return to Washington as a visiting player for Houston’s Garrison Mathews, who played his first two NBA seasons there.

With recently suspended starters Kevin Porter Jr. and Christian Wood presumably back in the lineup, the Houston Rockets will look to snap an eight-game losing streak with Wednesday’s visit to Washington.

It won’t be easy for the rebuilding Rockets get a win versus the host Wizards, who come off an impressive win on Monday versus Charlotte in which Bradley Beal and Kyle Kuzma combined for 71 points.

In their most recent loss at Philadelphia, the Rockets benefited from a very strong return by former Wizards wing Garrison Mathews, who had missed the prior four games while in the NBA’s health and safety protocols. However, it was offset by an unusually cold game by rookie Jalen Green, who shot just 25% overall and 20% on 3-pointers.

For Mathews, Wednesday’s 6:00 p.m. CST tipoff in Washington could be a revenge opportunity of sorts, since the 25-year-old played his first two NBA seasons there but ultimately was not re-signed after 2020-21.

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