On the trail of improvement

PORTLAND • In blockbuster summer acquisition John Wall, Eric Gordon, DeMarcus Cousins and Mason Jones, the Houston Rockets have four players serving week-long Covid-19-enforced quarantines.

Another two reserves - Ben McLemore and Kenyon Martin Jr - are out indefinitely after testing positive for the coronavirus last week. Their National Basketball Association (NBA) opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder, scheduled for last Wednesday, was postponed as the Rockets did not have the league-required minimum of eight players available due to positive tests and contact tracing.

All-Star James Harden, who reportedly wants out of Houston, was also hit with a US$50,000 (S$66,500) fine last week for violating the league's health and safety protocols after attending a private indoor party.

Given the disruptions, the Rockets guard was satisfied with his performance as his short-handed team lost 128-126 in overtime to the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday. Houston had just nine players in uniform - one above the NBA minimum - but Harden, who had a joint game-high 44 points, felt the visitors could have won.

"It was all right. Too many turnovers," he said. "But other than that, first game playing 40-something minutes, I feel like my conditioning could be better, but it was pretty solid. I think we let them get away from us."

New Rockets coach Stephen Silas, who is starting his first season as a head coach after 20 years as an NBA assistant and scout, was equally encouraged, adding: "We obviously have some things we need to clean up. But overall, I'm so, so proud of this group and how they fought under these circumstances."

Harden did not put a foot wrong all night except for one of his four turnovers proving costly at the death - with 1.3 seconds remaining, his pass was picked off by Robert Covington. That meant C.J. McCollum's three-pointer with 6.9 seconds left was the game winner, as the Blazers bounced back from their opening loss to the Utah Jazz last week. The guard also had 44 points, while All-Star teammate Damian Lillard added 32 points.

On Portland's star duo, Harden said: "We tried to do everything that it takes as a team to stop whoever has the hot hand. They both started off slow and then the rest of the game, they caught fire."

McCollum returned the compliment, saying: "Regardless of what James does in his spare time, James is really f****** good at basketball. Like, he's really good."

The Rockets will again be without the sextet when they travel to the Denver Nuggets today, while Chris Clemons has been ruled out for the season after tearing his Achilles tendon in pre-season,

However, Wall, Gordon, Cousins and Jones are expected to return for Thursday's home game with the Sacramento Kings and Harden believes the team will "get things clicking faster" once the quartet is back.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS