The Houston Rockets have been one of the top teams against the opposing conference as they’ve defeated many of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. However, they’ve also dropped some big games against Eastern Contenders, which makes it more difficult for Houston to climb its own standings.
The Rockets still have a few games remaining this season against East teams that could cause a problem. They’ll need to take each matchup serious if they hope to hold on to their position in the West.
The Rockets got to a good start by defeating the Orlando Magic in a come from behind victory that required a huge effort from Kevin Durant and Reed Sheppard.
That duo brought the offense necessary to come back late in the third against the Magic, and the rest of the team held on to give the Rockets a hard-fought victory.
They’ll have to do battle against a few Eastern Conference teams currently in postseason position. After a game against the Miami Heat on the road, they’ll take on the Toronto Raptors at home before hosting the Atlanta Hawks and Miami after a long Western Conference stretch.
A few games later they’ll try to redeem themselves against the New York Knicks after their meltdown loss into them a few games ago, just before playing a Milwaukee Bucks that may have Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Houston then plays a hot Philadelphia 76ers team just three games away from the end of the season.
Winning games against Houston’s Eastern Conference foes is one of the ways the team will maintain its current position as No. 3 in the West.
Games against Western Conference teams may have slightly more significance in the standings, but the Rockets can’t afford to give away winnable games as most teams in the East have poorer records or less talent on their rosters.
However, Eastern Conference teams are just as capable at an upset or beating one of the league’s top teams, and games against them will still play a factor into the West’s postseason position.
Teams directly competing with the Rockets in the West like the Denver Nuggets and the Minnesota Timberwolves will also be looking to take advantage of their games against Eastern Conference teams, and their performance against the other conference could be indicative of how their final position may be.
Western Conference teams have been beating up on each other all season; there are few that have a significant advantage over the other teams in the conference. Because of this, wins against teams under .500 and against Eastern Conference teams are crucial for the final standings.