A game should be fall into the category of “trap game” if everyone sees the trap waiting. The Rockets saw it. The game in New Orleans was emotional, going down to the last minute. The Suns had been easily beaten twice before. The afternoon start was if nothing else a break in the routine players prefer to never change.
The Rockets dutifully began the game with energy defensively, led quickly and slipped past the trap like James Harden doing a Eurostep in the lane. When the first half devolved into a free throw shooting contest, however, the Rockets struggled to maintain their intensity for slow walks to the line to score while standing still.