Getty James Harden, at left, and Russell Wesbtrook of the Rockets
The James Harden led Houston Rockets will face off against Kyle Lowry and the Toronto Raptors as both teams get their first taste of bubble basketball on Friday.
The scrimmage starts at 7:30 p.m. ET and will be televised nationally on NBA TV.
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If you don’t have cable, you can watch a live stream of the Rockets vs Raptors scrimmage via a free trial of FuboTV.
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Rockets vs Raptors Scrimmage Preview
Two teams that have interesting journeys ahead of them square off as the defending NBA champion Raptors take on the Rockets in Orlando.
The Rockets (40-24) are the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference, but could conceivably get all the way up to No. 2 during the league’s eight seeding games if everything went right. The Clippers, who currently occupy the second spot, are only four games ahead in the logjam of teams.
Rockets star and former MVP Russell Westbrook tested positive for COVID-19 during the hiatus, but was able to join the team after quarantine and various steps taken along the way. According to James Harden, his backcourt buddy hasn’t missed a step.
“Russell is, like, a creative person. You’d think in quarantine, he might be out of shape since he hasn’t been able to work out. But he’s faster than everybody still on the court. He’s still out there dunking. He’s Russell. I’ve known him for so long, he’s just one of those guys that can just get up and doesn’t really have to stretch. He can just go right out there and run and dunk. He looked really good.”
Westbrook is averaging 27.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 7.0 assists this season, while Harden leads the league with 34.4 points per game to go with 6.4 rebounds and 7.4 assists.
The Rockets depth took a hit on Friday before the scrimmage, with veteran guard Austin Rivers leaving the bubble to attend to a family emergency. He’ll have to quarantine for four days without positive tests upon returning.
The Raptors (46-18) are the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference and will have to battle with the Celtics to stay in that spot. The team will rely on All-Star Kyle Lowry to help lead the way during the unprecedented stretch.
“It’s clearly Kyle’s team,” Raptors head coach Nick Nurse told the CBC. “His care factor is way up there. His intelligence factor is way up. We’re in good hands with him being the leader of this team. When a guy plays the way he does, the leadership by example. That phrase is probably overused, but it’s certainly the case.”
The break did the Raptors well, having struggled with injuries this season. Their starters missed more than 70 games, but they were still able to reel off an impressive record. Pascal Siakam will look to stay on his upward, star trajectory and veteran big man showed up to the team looking slimmer than ever, ready for another title run.