Chris Paul carries the Rockets past the Jazz in Game 5: 3 takeaways
The Rockets completed the gentlemen’s sweep of the Jazz and advanced to the Western Conference Finals with a Game 5 victory.
The Jazz put up a fight, but Chris Paul and injuries were too much as the Houston Rockets won Game 5 by a final score of 112-102.
The game was tied at 43 with two minutes to go in the second quarter when the Rockets went on an 11-3 run to take an eight-point lead into the half. It was a sluggish first half for the usually dynamic Rockets offense, but that run allowed them some breathing room as they regrouped in the locker room.
It was the Jazz who looked fresher coming out of the half, outscoring Houston 37-24 in the third quarter to take a three-point lead into the final frame. Rookie Donovan Mitchell provided 15 points in the final four minutes of the third for Utah.
And then Paul took over. With James Harden struggling, Paul took the reigns of the offense and carried Houston to their second Western Conference Finals in four years and the first of his career. CP3 finished with 20 points in the fourth.
Takeaways
Paul is a choker no more. The Rockets point guard had unfairly been labeled a “choker” by those obsessed with RINGZ in the NBA. Everyone pointed to his lack of playoff success — i.e. never making it out of the second round — as a knock against him.
No more can that be held against him.
Harden was not good in Game 4 or 5 in this series. And it didn’t matter because Paul took over when they needed him. In the final two games of the series, Paul had 68 points, 16 assists, 19 rebounds, and just one turnover. He went 8-of-10 from 3-point range in Game 5, including a clutch bank shot in the fourth.
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Paul has always been one of the top point guards in the league. Tonight served as a reminder of just how good he is. And now, we can all move past the “never made it out of the second round” jokes and focus on the “never made it to the Finals” jokes.
Injuries are no fun. The Jazz came to play on Tuesday night. Anyone who watched this team all season knew they wouldn’t go quietly into the offseason. But they couldn’t overcome all of the injuries.
Starting point guard Ricky Rubio missed the entire series after suffering a first round hamstring injury against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Defensive stalwart Dante Exum missed Game 5 due to a hamstring injury suffered in Game 4. And Mitchell had to leave in the fourth quarter of Game 5 with an ankle injury.
It’s tough enough to beat the Rockets at full strength. Not having your top point guard and then losing the only other capable offensive player in the fourth just isn’t fair. This is a different series if Rubio were able to play and it could have been a different game if Mitchell were able to finish it out. But injuries are part of the game. Though someone should look into making them illegal.
P.J. Tucker emerges. Quick, who was the second leading scorer on Houston in Game 5? If you said Harden, you would be wrong. If you said Clint Capela, you would once again be wrong. If you said Eric Gordon, did you not read the first sentence? It’s even in bold.
Tucker is the correct answer. He finished with 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting and 5-of-7 from 3. He was excellent for Houston throughout this series, scoring in double-figures in three of the five games. He averaged 11.8 points and 6.8 rebounds while playing his usual brand of physical defense.
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Role players in Houston trend up-and-down on a game-to-game basis. Tucker’s stock hit a season high in Game 5.