HOUSTON -- Isolated at the top of the key, Donovan Mitchell settled into a defensive squat with the expected MVP lining him up with crossovers and between-the-legs moves. James Harden rocked back and forth, his beard bobbing up and down and sensing Mitchell leaning ever so slightly, he started a hard drive left, and Mitchell reached. Maybe it was self-preservation so as not to get roasted, but it smelled of a rookie rookie-ing -- losing discipline in only the briefest of moments, and it costing him his fourth foul with 6:40 to go.
The Rockets took it side out, back to Harden and forcing another switch on Mitchell.