On paper, the Houston Rockets roster reflects that of a team ready to win a championship. James Harden is only a year beyond his 2014-15 season where he was voted MVP by the players. Dwight Howard is still one of the most dominant and physical big men in the NBA. This is not a team that should be losing in the first round of the playoffs, albeit to a team that had 73 regular season wins.
But there is more to a team than just the players that make it up and their individual stats. Chemistry plays a huge role in any great team, a category in which the Rockets seem to be greatly lacking.
As long as Dwight Howard has been in Houston we’ve heard about the tension between himself and James Harden. Yet when asked if there was a chemistry issue within the Rockets locker room, Howard kept silent.
While the two stars have never been able to see eye-to-eye, according to ESPN’s Calvin Watkins, the relationship dissolved more and more as the season went along. At one point, the two even requested to have each other traded.
With Howard now expected to leave in free agency, the obvious question becomes ‘where will he end up?’ After dealing with tension with the star players of two different teams (Lakers/Rockets), the reputation of Howard as someone who can provide chemistry for your team has taken a severe hit. As much as he is expecting to get paid for his services as an elite rebounder and physical presence in the paint, teams are likely to second guess whether the big man is worth the drama.
On paper, the Houston Rockets roster reflects that of a team ready to win a championship. James Harden is only a year beyond his 2014-15 season where he was voted MVP by the players. Dwight Howard is still one of the most dominant and physical big men in the NBA. This is not a team that should be losing in the first round of the playoffs, albeit to a team that had 73 regular season wins.
RELATED: James Harden, Dwight Howard have ‘cordially bad' relationship
But there is more to a team than just the players that make it up and their individual stats. Chemistry plays a huge role in any great team, a category in which the Rockets seem to be greatly lacking.
As long as Dwight Howard has been in Houston we’ve heard about the tension between himself and James Harden. Yet when asked if there was a chemistry issue within the Rockets locker room, Howard kept silent.
While the two stars have never been able to see eye-to-eye, according to ESPN’s Calvin Watkins, the relationship dissolved more and more as the season went along. At one point, the two even requested to have each other traded.
With Howard now expected to leave in free agency, the obvious question becomes ‘where will he end up?’ After dealing with tension with the star players of two different teams (Lakers/Rockets), the reputation of Howard as someone who can provide chemistry for your team has taken a severe hit. As much as he is expecting to get paid for his services as an elite rebounder and physical presence in the paint, teams are likely to second guess whether the big man is worth the drama.