Houston Rockets vs. Golden State Warriors game 1 preview

The Rockets open up the postseason against a familiar foe

Of course it’s the Golden State Warriors. It was always going to be them.

In their first return to the NBA playoffs since 2020, the Houston Rockets were destined to take on the team that has eliminated them in four of the past six postseasons.

Obviously, the current versions of both teams is quite different than the ones that faced off in 2019, but the key figures for the Warriors are still present. Steph Curry is still the best shooter of all-time and a terrifying opponent. Draymond Green has all the wily veteran moves (read: mind games) and can get away with moving screens, yelling at referees, and an assortment of questionable activities. Steve Kerr is still pulling the strings and running a motion offense that seems to baffle any player wearing a Rockets jersey. Add in Jimmy Butler III and you can see why the Warriors are the favorites in this series.

You saw in the play-in that the Warriors are going to have a parade set up to the free throw line. If you believe that the NBA is putting their thumb on the scale, you definitely see the tantalizing Lakers-Warriors possibility in the second round and think, “Of course the league will do what it can to make that happen.” The Rockets have to assume that they’re playing every game 5-on-8. It doesn’t take a long memory to remember Scott Foster and Tony Brothers refusing to give the Rockets a chance in Game 7. That was done to set up a Steph-LeBron Finals for like the fourth year in a row.

Also, keep in mind that Jalen Green has traditionally struggled against the Warriors. And “struggled” is putting it mildly. Green has a career true shooting percentage of 54.2%, which is a bit below league average (57.6%). Against the Warriors in his career, Green has a TS% of 40.8%. And until he went 9-19 against them two weeks ago, it was sub-40%. The Rockets need Green to at least be the average version of himself, which is a tough ask for a 23-year-old in his first postseason.

Golden State has been here before, and most of the Rockets haven’t. It will be important for veterans such as Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, and Steven Adams to step up and help when the offense or defense starts falling apart.

This season has been an absolute success for the Rockets, but now with the 2 seed, the expectations have jumped mightily. That’s a dangerous proposition, but this team has been tenacious and has been unafraid in big moments.

We’ll be in the Playback room tonight, so you should come join to watch the Rockets and talk about the game. Remember, we get a handful of VIP passes that we give out to anyone who wants to watch the game. No League Pass necessary!

Tip-off

8:30pm CT

How To Watch

TNT, Space City Home Network, and Playback

Injury Report

Rockets

Jae’Sean Tate: GTD

Jabari Smith Jr.: GTD

Warriors

None

The Line (as of this post)

HOU -1.5

Check here for updates

Looking ahead because we can

Game 2 in Houston on Wednesday