NBA icon Isiah Thomas joined the set of First Things First on Monday morning. Amid the wide-ranging discussion, the former Pistons point guard was asked to comment on the Rockets' pairing of James Harden and Russell Westbrook.
Some experts feel that Harden and Westbrook will struggle to find a rhythm on the court. Naysayers claim that the two ball-dominant players will not be able to co-exist on the same team in a productive fashion. Thomas, however, thinks it's a great match.
“Russell Westbrook and James Harden will be the modern-day Walt “Clyde” Frazier and Earl Monroe,” Thomas said of the pairing. “When it was talked about that Monroe was getting traded to the Knicks, there were questions about them working out. Well, we saw what they were able to do together.”
"Russell Westbrook and James Harden will be the modern-day Walt "Clyde" Frazier and Earl Monroe. When it was talked about that Monroe was getting traded to the Knicks, there were questions about them working out. Well, we saw what they were able to do together." — @IsiahThomas pic.twitter.com/M9jmVCmyID
— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) July 22, 2019
There is some reason for concern about shot distribution (and ball handling) in Houston. If Harden and Westbrook can figure out a way to share the ball, though, the Rockets will have one of the more formidable backcourts in the NBA.
In a recent interview with Alykhan Bijani of The Athletic, Rockets head coach Mike D'Antoni noted that he is not going to change either player:
“I’m not going to change Russell or James,” D'Antoni said. “We’ll tweak something’s to see what we can do better, but I expect a lot of Russell and James coming at you.”
The Rockets finished the 2018-19 regular season campaign with a 53-29 overall record, which earned the team a No. 4 seed in the Western Conference Playoffs. Unfortunately, though, Houston was defeated by the Golden State Warriors in the second round, 4-2.
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