2018–19 Houston Rockets season
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2018-19 Houston Rockets season
)
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The 2018–19 Houston Rockets season was the 52nd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and their 48th in the Houston area.[1]
Despite early struggles in the season including an on-court altercation between rival guards Chris Paul and Rajon Rondo, injuries among its players, and losing core players including Trevor Ariza, the team made a dramatic improvement and finished as the 4th seed in the West. Most notable within the surge would be Harden's impressive play. It included his 30-point streak which started on December 8, all the way to a surprising 32 games until ending on February 25. This streak had left him 2nd for continuous 30+ points in a game, leaving Wilt Chamberlain as 1st. On March 24, against the Pelicans, they had clinched another playoff spot for the 7th straight year.
In the playoffs, the Rockets defeated the Utah Jazz in the First Round in five games. However, the Rockets would lose in six games against the two-time defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Semifinals, their fourth playoff exit against the Warriors in the last five postseasons. They previously lost to the Warriors in 2015 (conference finals), 2016 (first round), and 2018 (conference finals).
Draft picks
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 46 | De'Anthony Melton | Guard |  United States
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USC (So.) |
Entering the night of the draft, the Rockets had only one selection at hand, with it being the pick they acquired from the Miami Heat via a previous trade involving the Memphis Grizzlies and Charlotte Hornets, being the lowest second round pick of those teams. On the night of the draft, the Rockets selected former University of Southern California guard De'Anthony Melton as their sole selection that year. Melton only played one season at USC, playing that previous season as a starter in 25 out of 36 games played there, recording averages of 8.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.0 blocks, and 1.9 steals per game that season. He was originally planned to play in his sophomore season, but was suspended and later left in relation to the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball corruption scandal. Prior to the start of the season, Melton was traded alongside veteran power forward Ryan Anderson to the Phoenix Suns on August 31, 2018, in exchange for veteran point guard Brandon Knight and power forward Marquese Chriss.
Roster
| 2018–19 Houston Rockets roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Standings
Division
| Southwest Division | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y – Houston Rockets | 53 | 29 | .646 | – | 31–10 | 22–19 | 10–6 | 82 |
| x – San Antonio Spurs | 48 | 34 | .585 | 5.0 | 32–9 | 16–25 | 10–6 | 82 |
| Memphis Grizzlies | 33 | 49 | .402 | 20.0 | 21–20 | 12–29 | 8–8 | 82 |
| New Orleans Pelicans | 33 | 49 | .402 | 20.0 | 19–22 | 14–27 | 8–8 | 82 |
| Dallas Mavericks | 33 | 49 | .402 | 20.0 | 24–17 | 9–32 | 4–12 | 82 |
Conference
| Western Conference | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | c – Golden State Warriors * | 57 | 25 | .695 | – | 82 |
| 2 | y – Denver Nuggets * | 54 | 28 | .659 | 3.0 | 82 |
| 3 | x – Portland Trail Blazers | 53 | 29 | .646 | 4.0 | 82 |
| 4 | y – Houston Rockets * | 53 | 29 | .646 | 4.0 | 82 |
| 5 | x – Utah Jazz | 50 | 32 | .610 | 7.0 | 82 |
| 6 | x – Oklahoma City Thunder | 49 | 33 | .598 | 8.0 | 82 |
| 7 | x – San Antonio Spurs | 48 | 34 | .585 | 9.0 | 82 |
| 8 | x – Los Angeles Clippers | 48 | 34 | .585 | 9.0 | 82 |
| 9 | Sacramento Kings | 39 | 43 | .476 | 18.0 | 82 |
| 10 | Los Angeles Lakers | 37 | 45 | .451 | 20.0 | 82 |
| 11 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 36 | 46 | .439 | 21.0 | 82 |
| 12 | Memphis Grizzlies | 33 | 49 | .402 | 24.0 | 82 |
| 13 | New Orleans Pelicans | 33 | 49 | .402 | 24.0 | 82 |
| 14 | Dallas Mavericks | 33 | 49 | .402 | 24.0 | 82 |
| 15 | Phoenix Suns | 19 | 63 | .232 | 38.0 | 82 |
Game log
Preseason
| 2018 preseason game log Total: 4–1 (home: 1–1; road: 3–0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Preseason: 4–1 (home: 1–1; road: 3–0)
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| 2018–19 season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Regular season
| 2018–19 game log Total: 53–29 (home: 31–10; road: 22–19) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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October: 1–5 (home: 0–4; road: 1–1)
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November
: 9–6 (home: 4–1; road: 5–5)
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December
: 11–4 (home: 9–0; road: 2–4)
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January
: 8–6 (home: 6–3; road: 2–3)
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February
: 8–4 (home: 3–1; road: 5–3)
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March
: 12–3 (home: 7–1; road: 5–2)
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April
: 4–1 (home: 2–0; road: 2–1)
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| 2018–19 season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playoffs
| 2019 playoff game log Total: 6–5 (home: 5–1; road: 1–4) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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First Round: 4–1 (home: 3–0; road: 1–1)
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Conference Semifinals: 2–4 (home: 2–1; road: 0–3)
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| 2019 playoff schedule | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Player statistics
Regular season
| Player | Pos. | GP | GS | MP | Reb. | Ast. | Stl. | Blk. | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carmelo Anthony† | PF | 10 | 2 | 294 | 54 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 134 |
| Clint Capela | C | 67 | 67 | 2,249 | 848 | 96 | 44 | 102 | 1,114 |
| Michael Carter-Williams† | PG | 16 | 1 | 145 | 13 | 21 | 9 | 6 | 69 |
| Chris Chiozza≠ | PG | 7 | 0 | 33 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Marquese Chriss† | PF | 16 | 0 | 104 | 28 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 29 |
| Gary Clark | PF | 51 | 2 | 641 | 116 | 18 | 20 | 26 | 148 |
| Vincent Edwards | SF | 2 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| James Ennis† | SF | 40 | 25 | 949 | 117 | 27 | 38 | 16 | 294 |
| Kenneth Faried≠ | C | 25 | 13 | 610 | 206 | 18 | 15 | 19 | 323 |
| Eric Gordon | SG | 68 | 53 | 2,158 | 148 | 129 | 41 | 27 | 1,103 |
| Gerald Green | SG | 73 | 0 | 1,473 | 182 | 40 | 33 | 27 | 675 |
| James Harden | PG | 78 | 78 | 2,867 | 518 | 586 | 158 | 58 | 2,818 |
| Isaiah Hartenstein | PF | 28 | 0 | 221 | 47 | 15 | 7 | 12 | 53 |
Danuel House ‡ |
SF | 39 | 13 | 979 | 140 | 40 | 21 | 11 | 366 |
| Terrence Jones≠ | PF | 2 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Brandon Knight† | PG | 12 | 0 | 118 | 9 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 36 |
| Nenê | C | 42 | 2 | 546 | 123 | 26 | 18 | 15 | 151 |
| James Nunnally≠ | SF | 2 | 0 | 38 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Chris Paul | PG | 58 | 58 | 1,857 | 265 | 473 | 114 | 18 | 906 |
| Austin Rivers≠ | SG | 47 | 13 | 1,345 | 91 | 109 | 29 | 13 | 408 |
| Iman Shumpert≠ | SG | 20 | 1 | 382 | 54 | 21 | 12 | 4 | 91 |
| P. J. Tucker | PF | 82 | 82 | 2,802 | 479 | 96 | 132 | 39 | 601 |
| Zhou Qi‡ | PF | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
After all games.[2]
‡Waived during the season
†Traded during the season
≠Acquired during the season
Playoffs
| Player | Pos. | GP | GS | MP | Reb. | Ast. | Stl. | Blk. | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clint Capela | C | 11 | 11 | 331 | 113 | 16 | 3 | 12 | 107 |
| Gary Clark | PF | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kenneth Faried | C | 6 | 0 | 56 | 21 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 24 |
| Eric Gordon | SG | 11 | 11 | 410 | 27 | 14 | 7 | 11 | 196 |
| Gerald Green | SG | 11 | 0 | 97 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 39 |
| James Harden | PG | 11 | 11 | 424 | 76 | 73 | 24 | 10 | 348 |
| Isaiah Hartenstein | PF | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Danuel House |
SF | 7 | 0 | 53 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 27 |
| Nenê | C | 7 | 0 | 141 | 22 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 34 |
| Chris Paul | PG | 11 | 11 | 397 | 70 | 60 | 24 | 7 | 187 |
| Austin Rivers | SG | 10 | 0 | 215 | 21 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 74 |
| Iman Shumpert | SG | 8 | 0 | 109 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 29 |
| P. J. Tucker | PF | 11 | 11 | 426 | 82 | 19 | 19 | 8 | 125 |
Transactions
Trades
| August 2, 2018[3] | To Houston Rockets Draft rights to Maarty Leunen |
To Dallas Mavericks Chinanu Onuaku Cash considerations Option to swap 2020 second-round draft picks |
| August 31, 2018[4] | To Houston Rockets Brandon Knight Marquese Chriss |
To Phoenix Suns Ryan Anderson De'Anthony Melton |
| January 7, 2019[5] | To Houston Rockets Conditional 2020 second-round draft pick (Memphis) |
To Chicago Bulls Michael Carter-Williams Cash considerations |
| January 22, 2019[6] | To Houston Rockets Draft rights to Tadija Dragićević |
To Chicago Bulls Carmelo Anthony Draft rights to Jon Diebler Cash considerations |
| February 7, 2019[7][8][9] | To Houston Rockets Option to swap 2021 second-round draft picks |
To Philadelphia 76ers James Ennis III |
| To Houston Rockets Iman Shumpert (from Sacramento) Wade Baldwin IV Nik Stauskas 2021 second-round draft pick (Milwaukee) Option to swap 2020 second-round draft picks |
To Cleveland Cavaliers Brandon Knight Marquese Chriss Conditional 2019 first-round draft pick 2022 second-round draft pick | |
| To Houston Rockets Cash considerations |
To Indiana Pacers Wade Baldwin IV Nik Stauskas Draft rights to Maarty Leunen 2021 second-round draft pick (Milwaukee) |
Free agency
Re-signed
| Player | Signed |
|---|---|
| Chris Paul[10] | 4-year contract worth $160 million |
| Gerald Green[11] | 1-year contract worth $2.4 million |
| Clint Capela[12] | 5-year contract worth $90 million |
Additions
| Player | Signed | Former team |
|---|---|---|
| Gary Clark | Two-way contract | Cincinnati Bearcats |
| Vincent Edwards | Two-way contract | Purdue Boilermakers |
| Michael Carter-Williams[13] | 1-year contract worth $1.9 million | Charlotte Hornets |
James Ennis III
|
2-year contract worth $3.4 million | Detroit Pistons |
| Carmelo Anthony[14] | 1-year contract worth $2.4 million | Oklahoma City Thunder |
Danuel House
|
Two-way contract | Rio Grande Valley Vipers |
| Austin Rivers | 1-year, veteran's minimum contract | Phoenix Suns |
| James Nunnally | 10-day contract | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| Kenneth Faried | 1-year, veteran's prorated minimum contract | Brooklyn Nets |
| Terrence Jones | 10-day contract | Erie BayHawks
|
| Chris Chiozza | 10-day contract | Capital City Go-Go |
| Trevon Duval | Two-way contract | Milwaukee Bucks |
| Michael Frazier II | Prorated minimum contract | Rio Grande Valley Vipers |
Subtractions
| Player | Reason left | New team |
|---|---|---|
| Trevor Ariza[15] | 1-year contract worth $15 million | Phoenix Suns |
| Aaron Jackson | Waived |  Beijing Ducks
|
| Luc Mbah a Moute[16] | 1-year contract worth $4.3 million | Los Angeles Clippers |
| Markel Brown | 1-year contract | Darüşşafaka
|
| R. J. Hunter | Waived | Atlanta Hawks |
| Zhou Qi | Waived | n/a |
| James Nunnally | Waived | AX Armani Exchange Olimpia Milan
|
| Terrence Jones | Waived | n/a |
Awards
| Player | Award | Date awarded | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Week | December 17, 2018 | [17] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Week | December 31, 2018 | [18] |
| Mike D'Antoni | Western Conference Coach of the Month (December) | January 2, 2019 | [19] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Month (December) | January 3, 2019 | [20] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Week | January 21, 2019 | [21] |
| James Harden | NBA All-Star | January 24, 2019 | [22] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Month (January) | February 2, 2019 | [23] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Week | March 25, 2019 | [24] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Month (March/April) | April 11, 2019 | [25] |
References
- ^ "Houston Rockets Franchise Index | Basketball-Reference.com". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
- ^ "2018-19 Houston Rockets Roster and Regular season Stats". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
- ^ "Mavericks get center Chinanu Onuaku in trade with Rockets". NBA.com. August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ "Rockets Complete Four Player Trade with Suns". NBA.com. August 31, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
- ^ "Rockets Trade Michael Carter-Williams to Chicago". NBA.com/rockets. January 7, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
- ^ "Reports: Rockets agree to trade Carmelo Anthony to Bulls". NBA.com. January 22, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
- ^ "Rockets to trade James Ennis III to 76ers to get under luxury tax". houstonchronicle.com. Houston Chronicle. February 8, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
- ^ "Cavs Acquire Brandon Knight, Marquese Chriss Plus Picks in Three-Team Trade". NBA.com/cavaliers. February 7, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
- ^ "Rockets trade Nik Stauskas, Wade Baldwin to Pacers; Indiana to waive pair". ESPN.com. February 7, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
- ^ "Rockets Re-sign Chris Paul". NBA.com/rockets. July 8, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
- ^ "Rockets Re-sign Gerald Green". NBA.com/rockets. July 10, 2018. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- ^ "Rockets Re-sign Clint Capela". NBA.com/rockets. July 27, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
- ^ "Rockets Sign Free-Agent Michael Carter-Williams". NBA.com/rockets. July 7, 2018. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
- ^ "Rockets Sign Carmelo Anthony". NBA.com/rockets. August 13, 2018. Retrieved August 13, 2018.
- ^ "Suns Sign Trevor Ariza, 14-year veteran and NBA Champion". NBA.com/suns. July 6, 2018. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
- ^ "Press Release: L.A. Clippers signed forward Luc Mbah a Moute". NBA.com/clippers. July 19, 2018. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
- ^ "James Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Week". NBA.com. December 17, 2018. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
- ^ "James Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Week". NBA.com. January 2, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
- ^ "D'Antoni Western Conference Coach of the Month". NBA.com. January 2, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
- ^ "Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Month". NBA.com. January 3, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
- ^ "James Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Week". NBA.com. January 21, 2019. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
- ^ "NBA All-Star 2019 starters, captains revealed". NBA.com. January 24, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
- ^ "Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Month". NBA.com. February 2, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
- ^ "James Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Week". NBA.com/rockets. March 25, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
- ^ "James Harden Named NBA Western Conference Player of the Month for March/April". NBA.com/rockets. April 11, 2019. Retrieved April 11, 2019.