Preseason Final: Rockets 107 - Thunder 105

The Houston Rockets logged an impressive 107-105 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder Wednesday night in McAllen. We got a preview of what we can surely expect from the team going forward: Pace. Fast pace. Lots of fast pace. When there's so much youth on the roster, why not turn 'em loose?

Here are some early reactions from the Red in their win over Durant and Westbrook (who shined in his minutes):

Three Up

Chandler Parsons (10 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists in 22 minutes on 5-9 shooting):

Parsons came out firing early and showed some real confidence from the start. Right away, he took an open three-pointer on a quick catch-and-shoot, and while he missed it, I think he'll be able to build upon his efforts in camp to become an above-average three-point shooter going forward. He also used the pick and roll well and got out in transition like he normally does. I think Parsons is on a mission to remind everyone that despite the leadership qualities he has displayed, he is still gunning to be a weapon on the floor and in the stat sheet.

Terrence Jones (20 points, 6 rebounds, 1 block in 25 minutes on 8-14 shooting):

Jones' impressive Summer League spilled over to the preseason hardwood, where he continued to show up everywhere on the floor and fill in the gaps on offense and defense. Like we've said before, he's much more polished inside than he ever let on at Kentucky, and he's able to play multiple positions effectively. Keep shaking the tweener trend, Terrence, we'd love to see it.

Omer Asik (9 points, 7 rebounds, 1 block in 17 minutes on 3-6 shooting):

Perhaps nobody on the floor was more active than Asik in the first quarter. He chased down a loose ball and picked up an assist on a sweet pass to Patrick Patterson. He got out in transition and dunked home a nice lead pass from Jeremy Lin. I think Asik is going to settle in fine on offense given the number of open-ended plays that will simply need to be finished.

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We also saw good things from Kevin Martin and Marcus Morris. Each looked active and assertive, and Martin even picked up a few retro whistles. It was also good to see Jeremy Lamb snag eight rebounds.

Three Down

Carlos Delfino (3 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist in 23 minutes on 1-8 shooting):

We know Delfino can shoot. Today, he just didn't shoot the ball well. This will change as he grows more comfortable, I would assume.

Jeremy Lin (3 points, 6 assists, 3 steals in 20 minutes on 1-3 shooting):

Lin had a decent all-around game, but I would have liked to have seen more from him on the scoring end. He didn't get as many pick and roll opportunities as I would have hoped, and while he got in the lane almost at will, he turned the ball over a few times under the basket and failed to convert on a handful of chances. Still, it's his first game in a long time. He'll be back to his double-digit scoring ways soon enough.

Donatas Motiejunas (6 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block in 18 minutes on 2-4 shooting):

Donuts looked a little lost out there for a while but he eventually settled in. He was caught out of position on a few offensive plays when Chandler Parsons and Toney Douglas (who made some phenomenal passes) thought he was in position to receive a pass, and instead he failed to capitalize. He's going to need a lot more time to adjust to the American game, but there's no denying his talent. He now needs to put the throttle in the appropriate position.

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Still didn't love what I saw from Patrick Patterson, who doesn't look a whole lot different on the block. His jump shot has potential but it still has a low trajectory that can look a little ugly at times. I hope the production outweighs the eye test, in his case.

Stay tuned for more from Abel, either tonight or tomorrow morning. Should be good stuff.