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2018–19 Houston Rockets season

The 2018–19 Houston Rockets season was the 52nd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and their 48th in the Houston area.[1]

Despite early struggles in the season including an on-court altercation between rival guards Chris Paul and Rajon Rondo, injuries among its players, and losing core players including Trevor Ariza, the team made a dramatic improvement and finished as the 4th seed in the West. Most notable within the surge would be Harden's impressive play. It included his 30-point streak which started on December 8, all the way to a surprising 32 games until ending on February 25. This streak had left him 2nd for continuous 30+ points in a game, leaving Wilt Chamberlain as 1st. On March 24, against the Pelicans, they had clinched another playoff spot for the 7th straight year.

In the playoffs, the Rockets defeated the Utah Jazz in the First Round in five games. However, the Rockets would lose in six games against the two-time defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Semifinals, their fourth playoff exit against the Warriors in the last five postseasons. They previously lost to the Warriors in 2015 (conference finals), 2016 (first round), and 2018 (conference finals).

Draft picks

Entering the night of the draft, the Rockets had only one selection at hand, with it being the pick they acquired from the Miami Heat via a previous trade involving the Memphis Grizzlies and Charlotte Hornets, being the lowest second round pick of those teams. On the night of the draft, the Rockets selected former University of Southern California guard De'Anthony Melton as their sole selection that year. Melton only played one season at USC, playing that previous season as a starter in 25 out of 36 games played there, recording averages of 8.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.0 blocks, and 1.9 steals per game that season. He was originally planned to play in his sophomore season, but was suspended and later left in relation to the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball corruption scandal. Prior to the start of the season, Melton was traded alongside veteran power forward Ryan Anderson to the Phoenix Suns on August 31, 2018, in exchange for veteran point guard Brandon Knight and power forward Marquese Chriss.

Roster

Standings

Division

Conference

Game log

Preseason

Regular season

Playoffs

Player statistics

Regular season

After all games.[2]
‡Waived during the season
†Traded during the season
≠Acquired during the season

Playoffs

Transactions

Trades

Free agency

Re-signed

Additions

Subtractions

Awards

References

  1. ^ "Houston Rockets Franchise Index | Basketball-Reference.com". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
  2. ^ "2018-19 Houston Rockets Roster and Regular season Stats". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
  3. ^ "Mavericks get center Chinanu Onuaku in trade with Rockets". NBA.com. August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  4. ^ "Rockets Complete Four Player Trade with Suns". NBA.com. August 31, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
  5. ^ "Rockets Trade Michael Carter-Williams to Chicago". NBA.com/rockets. January 7, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  6. ^ "Reports: Rockets agree to trade Carmelo Anthony to Bulls". NBA.com. January 22, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  7. ^ "Rockets to trade James Ennis III to 76ers to get under luxury tax". houstonchronicle.com. Houston Chronicle. February 8, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  8. ^ "Cavs Acquire Brandon Knight, Marquese Chriss Plus Picks in Three-Team Trade". NBA.com/cavaliers. February 7, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  9. ^ "Rockets trade Nik Stauskas, Wade Baldwin to Pacers; Indiana to waive pair". ESPN.com. February 7, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  10. ^ "Rockets Re-sign Chris Paul". NBA.com/rockets. July 8, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  11. ^ "Rockets Re-sign Gerald Green". NBA.com/rockets. July 10, 2018. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  12. ^ "Rockets Re-sign Clint Capela". NBA.com/rockets. July 27, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
  13. ^ "Rockets Sign Free-Agent Michael Carter-Williams". NBA.com/rockets. July 7, 2018. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
  14. ^ "Rockets Sign Carmelo Anthony". NBA.com/rockets. August 13, 2018. Retrieved August 13, 2018.
  15. ^ "Suns Sign Trevor Ariza, 14-year veteran and NBA Champion". NBA.com/suns. July 6, 2018. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
  16. ^ "Press Release: L.A. Clippers signed forward Luc Mbah a Moute". NBA.com/clippers. July 19, 2018. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
  17. ^ "James Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Week". NBA.com. December 17, 2018. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  18. ^ "James Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Week". NBA.com. January 2, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
  19. ^ "D'Antoni Western Conference Coach of the Month". NBA.com. January 2, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
  20. ^ "Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Month". NBA.com. January 3, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
  21. ^ "James Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Week". NBA.com. January 21, 2019. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  22. ^ "NBA All-Star 2019 starters, captains revealed". NBA.com. January 24, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  23. ^ "Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Month". NBA.com. February 2, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  24. ^ "James Harden Named Western Conference Player of the Week". NBA.com/rockets. March 25, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  25. ^ "James Harden Named NBA Western Conference Player of the Month for March/April". NBA.com/rockets. April 11, 2019. Retrieved April 11, 2019.