Houston Rocket’s Playoff Chances are Slim

We all know the Houston Rocket’s as the Western Conference’s second most lethal powerhouse behind the Golden State Warriors. With a team changing player like James Harden, and their fairly new addition of superstar veteran Chris Paul, the Rockets should only be losing a handful of games this season. To begin with, they signed Carmelo Anthony to a one year, $2.4 million contract in August. Last season the Rockets finished as the most efficient offense in the NBA, so it seems like it would make sense that the addition of the veteran, Carmelo Anthony, would uphold that title. That is the furthest thing from the truth. Carmelo Anthony shot 32.8 percent from three-point range with Houston, while the league average is 35.1%; shot 68.2% of his free throws, while the league average is 76.1%; and lastly, he scored 13.4 points-per-game, his career-worst. Furthermore, in the 294 minutes Carmelo was on the floor, the Rockets were outscored by a whopping 63 points. To make matters worse, the Rockets outscored their opponents by 17 points for the 330 minutes Carmelo was on the bench. With that said, Carmelo Anthony was dropped, and today, the Rockets are standing at 11 wins 14 losses, 2.5 games out of the eighth seed, which leaves them at, an estimated, 36.7% chance of making it to the playoffs, and a 0.2% chance of winning the NBA title. This is beyond surprising, as no one would have dared to guess, that the team that had the most efficient offense last season, is currently last in the Southwest conference.