Thunder @ Rockets Preview: Durant Looks To Match Jordan
There is a lot of drama to follow in regards to the Oklahoma City Thunder taking on the Houston Rockets.
First, there is James Harden. Harden, who was at one time the best sixth man in the NBA and played for the Thunder. Will be taking on his former teammates. Harden is now a point leader on the Rockets.
Second, the Thunder are hot right now and it is going to take a lot to slow them down. They are coming off of a huge win against the San Antonio Spurs, 106-94, where they snapped the Spurs 19-game win streak.
With that win over the Spurs the Thunder now only sit three games behind the Spurs to take the number one seed with six game left.
Kevin Durant has a streak of his own he will be defending tonight. If Durant scores 25 or more points, it’ll be the 40th straight time he has done that. It will also match Michael Jordan’s accomplishment that he put up in the 1986-87 season.
The Thunder have won seven of their last eight games. Over those nine games, Durant is averaging 34.9 points a game.
Against the Rockets this season Durant has been particularly impressive. In the three times the Thunder have met the Rockets this season, Durant has averaged 37 points and 51.7 percent on shooting. The Rocket have also yet to pick up a win in the series.
The Rockets will be looking to bounce back against the Thunder and avoid a four-game skid.
The rut comes has Dwight Howard is sitting on the bench with an ankle injury and Patrick Beverley is out with a banged up knee.
“We’re a team that’s desperate for a win right now,” said guard Jeremy Lin. “We’ve dropped three in a row and it’s definitely not a good feeling and we’ve got a tough one. We just have to regroup.”
The Thunder are the favorites to win this game with a –2.5 point spread. The game starts at 9:30 p.m. ET and you can watch it on ESPN.
