The Houston Rockets lost two key players this offseason in Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute, and some people feel they are bound to disappoint next season after they won a franchise-record 65 games this year. Mike D’Antoni is extremely confident that will not be the case.
When asked recently about his expectations for his team heading into the 2018-19 season, D’Antoni said the Rockets have silenced critics in the past and expect to do it again.
“I think two things. And I don’t want to be snide. They said the same thing when we got Chris (Paul) and James (Harden). And I can see why they said that. (But) they don’t know what goes on, the inner workings of the team,” D’Antoni said, per Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle. “And they don’t know 100 percent what’s important and what isn’t important, and where we can not lose somebody and where we can kind of make it up. And I understand that.
“It’s our job to prove them wrong. And we did it for two years now. ‘James can’t be a point guard’ and now, ‘Those guys can’t play together.’ We’ve got one more big step. If we’re going to beat Golden State – which everybody is searching for – you’ve got to take some chances and you’ve got to hope that things hit out and hit that sweet spot. Doesn’t mean it will happen. But I’m confident and I love our guys. And I think the worst we’re going to be is great and hopefully we can take that last step.”
The Rockets are likely going to add Carmelo Anthony in the new future, but opinions have been mixed regarding whether he will be a fit in Houston. Anthony has made it clear that he has no intention of coming off the bench for any team, and it’s tough to imagine how there will be enough basketballs to go around for him, Harden and Paul.
If the Rockets do sign Anthony, we already have an idea of how Las Vegas will feel about the move. D’Antoni, however, thinks it would be unwise to bet against his squad.
