With Game 1 victory, the Rockets have set the tone vs. the Lakers

Eric Gordon’s stellar play

Eric Gordon had an important night by scoring 23 points on 7-of-14 from the field. Ever since Game 7 against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Gordon has been able to connect from the perimeter.

Gordon was 3-of-8 from three, (38 percent), which is much better than the 31.2 percent he made during the 2019-20 season. Gordon was also ferocious inside the paint on offense and effective defensively around the perimeter.

A good example of how dominant Gordon was on the defensive end of the floor is evidenced by the fact that four Lakers players shot 2-of-6 against Gordon. Houston Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni praised Gordon’s defense after the game.

“He’s been hampered by injuries all season. Right now I think his body feels good. He looks quick. His defense on LeBron was really good,” as D’Antoni said after game 1 on Friday night. “Every play on both ends was really well tonight.”

Hopefully, Gordon keeps his momentum high inside this series against the Lakers.

The Lakers’ bigs had a tough time keeping up with the Rockets small ball rotation, as both Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee logged a total of 24 minutes on the floor in Game 1. LeBron looked completely tired, as he and AD combined for a total of six points in the 4th quarter. After the game, LeBron compared the Rockets’ speed to the 2000 St. Louis Rams.

“It’s kind of like in the early 2000s when you had the St. Louis Rams, The Greatest Show on Turf,” James said after the Lakers loss. “People always used to say how they would scout them and scout them and scout them, but until you got on the field and you saw Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt and Marshall Faulk and (Az-Zahir) Hakim and all those guys. And you were like, ‘OK, we need to play them again,’ because there is no way you can simulate that speed. So, getting out on the floor and having a Game 1 gives you a good feel for it.”

LeBron emphasized more on the Rockets’ speed, as he said they will be ready for it next time.

Hopefully, the Rockets keep this momentum going against the Lakers throughout the series, as they are looking to shock the world, since they are the overwhelming underdogs in the series.