Patrick Beverley, James Harden have zero chill
We should have known better.
Of course Patrick Beverley was going to treat this game as if his team were on the brink of elimination. Of course James Harden was going to drop 30+ in one of the most meaningless games of the year. It’s just what these guys do.
Beverley was all over the place from the very beginning. He logged just 12 minutes in the LA Clippers’ opener but recorded six rebounds, two assists and a beautifully-timed block of Harden.
In fact, he was probably going a little too hard. Beverley picked up four fouls in the first half and remained on the bench throughout the second.
It probably doesn’t mean much, but it’s always worth considering Beverley’s foul troubles. As one of the more aggressive and hands-on defenders in the league, he’s consistently going to get called for touchy fouls. He’ll need to be more cautious early on if he intends to stay in the game with the rest of LA’s starters.
Harden did everything you would expect him to do, too. In 28 minutes, he went for 37 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. And although he shot just 8-22 from the field, Harden did what Harden does and went 17-20 at the free-throw line.
What’s strange about Harden’s performance was the amount of time he spent in the game. Houston was up by double digits basically throughout the whole game, but Harden didn’t exit until the end of the third quarter when he put the Rockets up by 24.
In a game that essentially means nothing and is missing three of its four marquee stars (Russell Westbrook, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George all sat), there wasn’t really a reason to keep Harden in for as long as he was.
With their first matchup out of the way, the LA Clippers will get some time to prepare for the Shanghai Sharks on Sunday before heading back to Los Angeles.