Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta is very confident about his team's chances of winning the 2020 NBA title.
In fact, Fertitta said that the Rockets' eight-man rotation leaves him speechless sometimes because it's so good.
.@TilmanJFertitta: "We have as good as chance as anybody…You have Russ and James, who want this, and P.J., and Eric and Covington, it's just a really good team. And then House and Rivers. When you start looking at our 8-man rotation, you just go 'wow', this is pretty darn good" https://t.co/mSso8L4j8h
— Alykhan Bijani (@Rockets_Insider) June 15, 2020
Led by MVPs James Harden and Russell Westbrook, the Rockets were in sixth place in the Western Conference standings before the 2019-20 season got suspended in March due to COVID-19. Houston had 40 wins, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves in their final game before Utah Jazz All-Star center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus.
Prior to the season getting suspended, Westbrook was averaging 27.5 points, 8.0 boards and 7.0 assists, while Harden was putting up 34.4 points, 6.4 boards and 7.4 dimes. Both superstars have been staying in shape during the hiatus, with Harden losing a ton of weight.
Skinny Harden took NBA Twitter by storm. Some Rockets fans believe his conditioning will be much better now moving forward.
Houston hasn't advanced to the NBA Finals during the Harden era. The team got close in 2018 but lost to the Golden State Warriors in the conference finals in seven games.
The hiatus had to be good for Westbrook since he was able to rest his knees. The triple-double machine has undergone multiple knee surgeries in his career. Russ may be even more explosive during the “bubble” games and that's a sight no one in the NBA wants to see.
The last time two MVPs teamed up was when Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry played on the Warriors. The duo won two rings together. Rockets fans are hoping Harden and Westbrook can bring a championship to Houston.