Hours after the unexpected firing of Kevin McHale, Harden shrugged off his slow start following his MVP runner-up season with 45 points, including all nine for Houston in overtime of a 108-103 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night.
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“I was extremely surprised that McHale was let go”, Carlisle said before Wednesday’s game.
“Whatever for the team to win, I’m ready to do”, Lawson said, adding that he was “good” with the change and it might help him play his game, via ClutchFans. If the team responds to him and we win, of course he can. “He probably was our most tradeable asset previous year”.
McHale was in his fifth season with the Rockets and on the first year of a $12 million three-year contract extension with the ballclub. Last season, they finished with the No 2 seed before reaching their first Western Conference Finals since 1995. With the poor start to the season, the Rockets became one of those teams and coach McHale was the scapegoat.
“At times, I wouldn’t say full effort all the time, no”, McHale said after a blowout loss to Boston in which Houston blew an early 15-point lead. “I told Kevin that today….”
When asked about what he thinks went wrong in Houston, Ainge initially didn’t give much of an answer.
Harden, 26, is averaging his typical 27.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game but has struggled mightily from the field. “We’ve got a spot for him”.
“We have a lot of guys who can make the big shot, but it’s really about getting the big shot”, he said.
The Rockets opened the season with three straight losses, then won four in a row before losing again. They’ve been playing well as of late but, as we’ve seen so far this season, the middle class of the Eastern Conference is crowded.
ESPN reported that the Rockets had a “players only” meeting at their home court on Tuesday, similar to what the Sacramento Kings did last week, but this time the result of the gathering was the dismissal of the team’s head coach.
“He’s an unbelievable guy and one of my favorite coaches I’ve ever played for, and definitely one that’s positive”, Parsons said. “So my ears are just locked in and focused in on what he’s saying”.
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During their playoff run, the Rockets raved about how McHale was a player’s coach.
