Eric Gordon expected to start for Rockets

When the Houston Rockets signed Danuel House to a three-year, $11.1 million contract this offseason, many figured him for the starting small forward in H-town for the upcoming season. In fact, Kelly Iko of The Athletic said back in July that House starting was a “real possibility.”

However, that sentiment seems to have changed after the Rockets signed Eric Gordon to a four-year, $76 million extension late this summer. Now The Athletic is reporting (this time by Alykhan Bijani) that the Rockets are likely to start EG at the small forward spot this season, saying:

“Westbrook will be paired with Eric Gordon for a majority of his minutes, especially with the second-unit. A team source told The Athletic that Gordon is also very likely to start this season alongside Harden and Westbrook.”

Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni reiterated that fact on a recent RocketsCast live podcast, telling host Craig Ackerman:

“Right now, Eric’s our starter. We’ll talk about it, and that could be an area that we work with. But again, I have to talk to Eric and we’ll see.”

So while it seems like this has the potential to become a fluid situation throughout the year, it sounds like you’re going to see EG out there with the starters on opening night. It’s an interesting decision for a team that really could use House’s length, especially for defending some of the bigger forwards in the league, but Gordon started 53 games this past season, and it’s obvious that the Rockets prize his shooting and his veteran leadership.

Gordon finished last season averaging 16.2 points per game on 41 percent shooting from the field and 36 percent shooting from beyond the arc. He rebounded nicely from a slow start to become one of Houston’s more consistent players in the postseason. In the playoffs, he increased his scoring average to 17.8 points per game on 44.7 percent from the floor and 40 percent from beyond the arc. He also played some stout defense, most notably on Utah’s Donovan Mitchell.

House, who also spent some time in the G-League, finished the year averaging 9.4 points and 3.6 rebounds per game on 46.8 percent from the field and 41.6 percent from three. The Rockets were also looking for big things from him in the postseason, but a toe injury limited his effectiveness, and he only played in 7 out of 11 playoff games, averaging just 4.9 points on 29.7 percent shooting from the field and 25.8 percent from deep.

So what say you, TDS?