What seemed like one of the most unremarkable playoff series in recent memory has turned into a shocking tale full of twists and turns, with one final chapter left in store. The Clippers seemed to have this series wrapped up after game four. After all, they had just spent two games in L.A. obliterating the Rockets to take a commanding 3-1 lead. However, James Harden broke out for a triple-double in game five, leading to the madness that ensued in game six, where Houston outscored the Clippers 40-15 in the fourth quarter to rally and improbably force a game seven on Sunday. Let’s take a look and try to process what exactly happened in the past few games of this series.
Dr. James and Mr. Harden
What’s been the most confounding plot line in this series is what to make of James Harden. The MVP runner up has been on and off throughout the entire matchup. In game five, we saw good James Harden, who had a triple-double and was dominant all night. In game six, however, we saw bad James Harden, and the most damning evidence against him was the fact that he and Dwight Howard combined for ZERO field goals during a fourth quarter in which the Rockets scored 40 points. Kevin McHale opted to leave him on the bench in the most critical portion of the season, and it worked wonders. So, it’s hard to imagine that James Harden was really an MVP, right? Let’s not close the verdict on this case just yet; good James Harden might just have one more cameo in game seven. The Rockets could certainly use him.
Choke City?
What has to be said about the Clippers after their appalling collapse in game six? Giving up 40 points to a mostly James Harden-less Rockets team led by Josh Smith and Corey Brewer? That certainly won’t sit well with the Clippers faithful, as Los Angeles simply stopped making shots and forgot how to play defense, apparently. This is a team that had been an offensive machine all night, and shot 4 for 22 in the fourth, with one of those being a meaningless three at the buzzer by Chris Paul. They couldn’t score to save their lives, and everyone looked tentative when it mattered most. Perhaps the Clippers will come back and take game seven, but the signs are all pointing in the wrong direction since their game four win. If they end up losing, it would go down as one of the biggest choke jobs in recent memory. Not just game six, but the entire series as a whole.
X-Factors
Game seven will be decided by several x-factors, that throughout the series have been entirely unpredictable. I won’t attempt to predict who will step up and who will shut down on Sunday, but I will say that I fully expect some unexpected contributors to step forward. Matt Barnes is a candidate for L.A., as is Jamal Crawford. Corey Brewer could step up again, and Jason Terry has played above expectations lately. Regardless, something great could happen in game seven, despite the fact that single digits decided only one game in this series. For two teams that had their sights set on greatness this year, we are hopefully treated to one more great game with a spot in the WCF on the line.