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As I sat and watched Dwight Howard wave over to Kevin McHale and the Houston Rockets‘ bench, I had a realization: Howard has finally matured. The valuable 7-footer had just picked up his second foul late in the first quarter on an arguably bad call. Nevertheless, any other coach would have taken Howard out of the game, especially against the Los Angeles Clippersand DeAndre Jordan. However, for the second time in the series, McHale listened to Howard, and it paid off.
Howard finished with only three personal fouls and the Rockets went on to take Game 7 after falling behind 3-1 earlier in the series. This incredible comeback was spurred by plenty of different power sources. No one can deny James Harden and his superstar ability or the supporting cast that played like starters, but I will say that Howard was the key.
Between the “Hack-a-Shaq” and poor free-throw shooting, previous Dwights would have folded under pressure and frustration. Instead, he harnessed the frustration into other avenues, such as stepping up on the defensive end or rebounding like a mad man. The center finished the series with three straight double-doubles, each of which were 15-plus point and 15-plus rebound performances.
Not only was his determination and focus unlike anything we have seen from Howard, his basketball I.Q. was phenomenal. When he was in foul trouble, he was able to make the adjustments and still be a force for his team. Game 7, for example, Howard picked up two fouls within the first nine minutes of the game. For the next 39 minutes, he only picked up one more foul.
Everyone knew that the Rockets were a good basketball team and would stir the pot. However, after the Game 1 loss to a Chris Paul-less Clippers, many people, including myself, wrote them off. Now, Houston has a ton of momentum and is playing at a very high level. Sure, it was an epic collapse by Los Angeles, but it was a better comeback from Houston. What makes this team even more menacing is a recently matured Howard, who finally looks like he wants to win an NBAChampionship.
Shane Phillips is a Miami Heat Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow Shane on Twitter @ShaneRantSports, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google. You can also email Shane at [email protected].
