5 Takeaways From Houston Rockets’ Early-Season Play

Patrick Beverley could have easily taken a dip statistically this season after performing at such a high level last year, but the second-year guard has played quite well in the three games he has been able to suit up for, averaging 10.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists on 50 percent shooting from the field. What’s even more impressive is his percentage from beyond the arc, which is at 54 percent, albeit from a small sample size.

With the loss of two key players, depth was supposed to be an issue for this Rockets squad, but the free agents the organization signed have done enough to keep the Rockets in contention. Both Trevor Ariza and Jason Terry have played quite well in the early part of the season. Ariza is averaging 14.6 points and 5.9 rebounds with the starting lineup, and Terry is averaging 8.7 points and shooting 50 percent from beyond the arc off the bench.

James Harden is already staking his claim for this season's MVP, and with Durant out for the foreseeable future and LeBron James struggling with the Cavaliers, it's a good possibility. Harden's stat line from this season is already impressive, grabbing 25.4 points, 6.7 rebounds (career high) and 7.1 assists (career high). If he can continue this high level of play, the Maurice Podoloff trophy could be waiting for Harden at the end of the season.

Dwight Howard has come out with a vengeance this season, averaging 19.7 points and 11.5 rebounds, while continuing his blistering block rate of 1.8 per game. Howard has been a force on the boards, which is exactly what this team needs. Defense was the Rockets' primary issue last year, which could attribute to their brutal exit in the first round of the playoffs, but Howard has made it a personal task this season to defend the paint well.

Dwight Howard isn’t the only player on the Rockets roster playing high-level defense. Trevor Ariza is in the top 10 in the league in steals per game, while Harden is averaging the most rebounds of his career. This is one of the primary reasons why the Rockets are the second-best team in the league in points allowed, holding their opponents to just 90.9 points per game.