Game thread: Rockets vs. Nets

The Houston Rockets are heading to to BK and not far from my former long-time apartment on Malcolm X Boulevard to take on the Nets at the Barclays Center. I moved out of New York and to much more affordable and family-friendly Pittsburgh before they built the Barclays, but every time I see an NBA game or a boxing match I’d really like to attend, I always find myself daydreaming of what might have been had a major sports entertainment complex been right down the road when I was living in Bed-Stuy.

Then again, I’m sure my rent was a small fraction of what the current crop of Brooklyn hipsters are now paying to live in the outer boroughs, so I supposed like everything in life, there’s a trade-off.

Anyway, my wishes to be in attendance for tonight’s contest aside, the Rockets are looking for their fifth win in a row against a 19-35 Nets squad that looks like it will be missing both Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Quincy Acy.

Meanwhile, the Rockets are getting healthier, with Eric Gordon making his return to the lineup after missing just one game with back tightness. He’ll have no restrictions. The Rockets will still be down Trevor Ariza, however, until further notice.

The Rockets should win tonight. But as we all know, no game in the NBA is automatic, especially with a team travelling east and playing an early start (7:30pm EST, but 6:30pm Rockets time). So I’d like to see our boys from Houston start fast and put the end to any thoughts of the upset early. Let a crummy team stick around, and who knows what could happen. Let’s get these guys out of there, step on their neck, and call it night.

Meanwhile, I’ll be watching NBA League Pass on my PS4 from my couch, wishing at least for 2.5 hours, that I was back in my fifth floor walk-up in BK. Oh, well. I’ll always have Yao Ming’s 36 and 11 game at the Garden as my pinnacle Rockets moment in NYC. I would’ve have loved to have added James Harden to that list as well though.

Go Rockets!