ROCKETS SET TO TAKE OFF

In case you haven't noticed,  the Houston Rockets have quietly gelled into a solid basketball team.  Under Kevin McHale's guidance the Rockets have played excellent basketball since the turn of the calendar year.  Houston is 20-6 since January, the best record in the NBA.

Houston has gotten to this position by feasting on eastern conference teams.  This season they are 18-3 against the eastern conference, the best of any western conference team.  No team in the east has won on the Rockets home-court thus far this season.

If history is a sign of what's to come, the Rockets are currently in a good position.  Over the past 33 years the NBA championship has been dispersed amongst nine franchises.  Houston won back to back titles during the 90's.  The front office has displayed the capability to maintain a level of consistency around the NBA.  For some strange reason the Larry O'Brien trophy seems to rotate cities.

James Harden and Dwight Howard have the potential to be the best guard, center combination in the NBA. When looking at the history of the NBA I notice a particular trend.  The leagues most successful teams almost always have two stars.  Tony Parker and Tim Duncan, Michael and Scottie, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant to name a few.

If Dwight Howard can manage to score on the block with consistency in the postseason,  Houston has a great shot at winning the west.  Like him or not Howard is the most dominant center in the NBA.

The Rockets are one of the top ten teams in the NBA in defensive efficiency as well as offensive efficiency.  Patrick Beverley is an excellent defensive point guard.  Chandler Parsons has developed into on of the better small forwards around the NBA.  The Rockets have viable options aside from Harden and Howard.

Houston's lack of a true ball distributor could prove costly come playoff time.  They're a young, confident, and jubilant bunch that doesn't seem to fear anyone around the NBA.