The Rockets do their thing, take Game 1 from the Utah Jazz: 3 takeaways

The Rockets played like the well-oiled machine they’ve been most of this season, and blew out the Jazz in Game 1.

Anyone hoping for a competitive series between the Jazz and Rockets must have been pretty discouraged at the end of the first 24 minutes. Houston had built a 25-point lead, hanging 30 on the vaunted Jazz defense in both quarters. Utah battled back in the second half but never enough to really put the outcome in jeopardy.

Utah’s star rookie, Donovan Mitchell, struggled shooting the ball and the Rockets leaned on the formula that’s worked for them all season long — outstanding shooting and James Harden’s individual brilliance. The Jazz can take some positives from this game but they’ll have some serious work to do if they’re going to turn this into a series.

Takeaways

James Harden is a tough cover. Obvious at this point, talking about the likely MVP, but Harden did his thing again and carved up the Jazz in Game 1. He finished with 41 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, shooting 12-of-26 from the field. Almost all of that damage was him creating for himself off the dribble, getting into spaces in the defense and taking advantage of the ensuing chaos. Ricky Rubio likely would have shared defensive responsibility on Harden and his absence was definitely felt in Game 1.

Rudy Gobert may not be enough to stop the Rockets. Gobert is as impactful as any individual defender in the NBA but his specialty, shutting down the paint, can be exploited to some degree by the Rockets. His impact was certainly felt in Game 1 — 17 of Houston’s 40 shots in the paint came outside the restricted area, as a team they shot just 45 percent in the paint — but Houston also dragged him away from the basket and created a plethora of open looks on the perimeter as Utah’s defense worked to adjust. Houston was 17-of-32 on 3-pointers and they can still hang a huge offensive number on a team, even without scoring around the basket.

Next: The effortless artistry of James Harden

It might not be as bad as it looked. Losing a Game 1 by 14 points certainly doesn’t inspire confidence, but the Jazz at least showed some signs that this series could be more competitive. Houston built most of their lead in the first half, but Utah outscored them in the second by 11 points. Utah hurt themselves with 18 turnovers and nine missed free throws. In addition, they shot just 7-of-22 on 3-pointers. With some healthy positive regression in those categories, the Jazz can certainly keep this series competitive.