NBA Game Reviews: January 14, 2021

1. Malcolm Brogdon is poised to earn his first All-Star appearance this season

Malcolm Brogdon may be the most underrated player in the NBA these days. In his first year in the league, Brogdon became the first second-round pick since 1965 to win the Rookie of the Year award. Two years ago, he became just the eighth player in NBA history to achieve a 50-40-90 season. The other guys on that list? Larry Bird, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Reggie Miller, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, and Mark Price. That’s some pretty good company. 

Brogdon has gradually improved his game over the course of his career, and in his fifth year, he’s taken it to another level. Brogdon is averaging 22.8 points, 7.4 assists, and 4.2 rebounds a game, and is flirting with another 50-40-90 season, shooting 48.1% from the field, 45.7% from deep, and 88.2% from the line. More importantly, the 28-year-old is the starting point guard on one of the best teams in the East, who just shipped out Oladipo, doubling down on their belief in Brogdon as their guard of the future. 

On Thursday, Brogdon finished with 25 points, five rebounds, seven assists, and three steals, leading the Pacers to their first win in Portland since 2007. Brogdon and Sabonis are slowly turning into one of the game’s best guard-big duos, and have Indiana sitting at 8-4, looking like one of the most complete teams in the entire league. Two off-seasons ago, Indiana offered Brogdon a four-year, $85 million offer sheet that many believed was an overpay, and the Milwaukee Bucks chose not to match. As Brogdon plays through the second year of that deal, the Pacers’ decision clearly looks like the right one.

2. The problem that Harden was referring to in Houston may have been himself

COLORS KEY | FULL ROCKETS FUTURE OUTLOOK

After a tumultuous past couple of months in Houston, the Rockets finally shaved their beard, shipping out James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets. The final straw was Harden’s postgame interview following back-to-back blowout losses to the Lakers, where he said the Rockets weren’t “good enough” to compete with the best teams in the league. Teammates John Wall and Demarcus Cousins didn’t hold back in their own interviews, and less than 24 hours later, Harden was gone. The Rockets trade looked to the future, as they gained four first-round picks and another four first-round swaps. 

They did, however, secure Victor Oladipo in the trade, a 28-year old on an expiring deal who will be playing for a big contract in the offseason. On Thursday, the Rockets didn’t have Oladipo suited up yet, while Wall and Eric Gordon were out with injuries. Down by nine with 4:39 to go, this cohesive Rockets team played inspired basketball. They went into San Antonio, took down the mostly fully-loaded Spurs, and secured their first road win of the season. However, this new-found level of chemistry doesn’t mean this Rockets team is now going to win the Championship in July. 

Their recent draft history hasn’t been great, but they’ll have a lot of cracks at hitting a winner over the next eight years, especially the back half of the deal when KD, Harden, and Kyrie are in the twilight years of their career. It’s not easy to trade a superstar and come away as a winner, but the Rockets put themselves in a position to be very successful in the future and proved to their current roster that the days of one player getting special treatment because of their talent are over. There’s a new era in Houston, and the current guys on the roster look very happy to be a part of it, which is a lot different than it was just 48 hours ago.

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