Houston Rockets vs. Boston Celtics preseason game preview

The Rockets wrap up their Orlando bubble preseason slate tonight when they take on the Boston Celtics. While everyone has shown various levels of rust, the Rockets have looked okay for the most part.

Russell Westbrook might be the lone exception, but he showed flashes in the first game to show that his explosiveness is still intact. It might take some time for him to feel fully comfortable after recovering from COVID-19, so rust should be expected.

One player that could use a good shooting night is Eric Gordon, who is 2-14 from deep in the first two scrimmages. There’s no two way to slice it: Houston needs Good EG to have any chance at making noise in the postseason. If they get Decent or Bad EG, the ceiling is the second round. That means the Rockets need Gordon to shoot as much as possible in this game and the seeding games to pull a Stella and get his groove back.

Meanwhile, Danuel House Jr. has looked like he’s getting paid a bonus check for every shot he takes. That’s the attitude Houston needs from its shooters. Too often in last year’s playoffs House disappeared or shrunk from big moments. He may not be on the floor in crunch time, but he has to make his mark on games for the Houston to be successful.

The last time these teams met, it was a wacky game.

Normally, we don’t allow links to streams here, but since the game will be broadcast online through two official channels, I think posting (legal) links to the game will be okay.

Tip-off is at 7pm CT on Rockets.com and Facebook