Starting Lineups, May 25: No changes as Warriors look to sweep Rockets
Is The #BasedGodsCurse active on holidays? That's really all the Houston Rockets need to know, with James Harden crumbling under the weight of the bad juju.
Harden played well for the first two games of the Western Conference Finals before failing to get a potential game-winning shot off at the end of Game 2. That put the Rockets in a 2-0 hole to the Golden State Warriors, and the bad ending for Harden carried over into a 3-of-16 performance in a 35-point Game 3 loss.
Now, Houston finds itself facing a 3-0 series deficit that each of the 116 NBA teams to try have failed to overcome.
It's unclear what they can change to avoid becoming the 117th. It's not a team that sounds ready to quit - and it's worth remembering that just last round, they became the ninth team ever to erase a 3-1 series deficit - but they're likely at a loss for how to stop Steph Curry and the Warriors' two-way juggernaut.
Updated:
Dwight Howard is 58-of-145 (40%) on FT's this postseason.
Steph Curry is 64-of-143 (45%) on three-pointers this postseason.
— Tommy Beer (@TommyBeer) May 24, 2015
The Rockets are now 0-7 against the Warriors between the regular season and playoffs, and they're out of time to find answers. Game 4 tips off at 9 p.m., and it's play your best game of the season or clean out your lockers.
Here are Monday's projected starting lineups:
Golden State Warriors at Houston Rockets, 9 p.m. ET
| Position | Warriors | Rockets |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Stephen Curry | Jason Terry |
| SG | Klay Thompson | James Harden |
| SF | Harrison Barnes | Trevor Ariza |
| PF | Draymond Green | Josh Smith |
| C | Andrew Bogut | Dwight Howard |
Warriors PF Marreese Speights (calf) will not play
Warriors C Ognjen Kuzmic (ankle) is available but unlikely to be active
Rockets PG Patrick Beverley (wrist) will not return for series
Rockets SF K.J. McDaniels (wrist), PF Donatas Motiejunas (back) out for the season
Warriors lead series 3-0