Part of what is making Austin Rivers a natural fit for the Rockets is the way coach Mike D'Antoni has liked using him at the end of games.
Without Chris Paul and James Ennis III, the coach has started Danuel House Jr. to bang bodies with opponents until the team needs to finish with more proficient scorers.
"The more ball-handlers we have on the floor, the better it is," D'Antoni said Friday. "The end of the game is most important."
Although his workload of 31 and 33 minutes in his first games with the Rockets suggests Rivers might as well start, as a rim attacker and confident shooter, he has bolstered a three-guard crunch time lineup with Harden and Eric Gordon.