Feisty Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets are in Washington on Monday night to take on the sagging Wizards.
Houston, third in the Western Conference, is coming off a 115-105 loss at Miami Saturday. In that contest, Durant and Heat star Tyler Herro had a heated conversation in the first quarter near the Heat bench resulting in both players getting technical fouls.
Durant, in his 18th season, remains one of the best talkers — and scorers — in the NBA. He leads the Rockets with 26.2 points a game and is shooting 39.9 percent from three-point range.
“I think we both needed a jolt of energy to start the game. I got respect for Tyler. He has respect for me. I appreciate his competitiveness and vice versa. I am mad we got techs though,” Durant said, smiling. “It was just talk. I just think it’s a natural part of the game.”
Houston will likely be without Jabari Smith Jr. against Washington with an ankle injury. Smith Jr. missed the loss to Miami, leaving a big hole in the middle of the Rockets defense that Miami exploited.
“They were the tougher team,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “They put their heads down, shoulders in our chests, and got to the basket way too easy. “(They had) 66 points in the paint, and with individual defense, we didn’t stand up tough enough.”
Washington has lost seven of its last nine games and is deep in the Eastern Conference standings. Washington brought in Trae Young and Anthony Davis at the trade deadline, but Davis will definitely not play this season while Young has yet to play due to dealing with a knee injury.
The Wizards have also been without No. 2 overall 2024 pick Alex Sarr for the last two weeks with a hamstring injury. Sarr has averaged 17.2 points for Washington this season, showing noticeable improvement in his second season.
Rookie guard Jamir Watkins has been eating up minutes for Washington and has scored in double figures in his last seven games, including 10 on 4-of-5 shooting in Saturday’s loss to Toronto.
“This is what this is all about, learning about these guys,” said Wizards coach Brian Keefe when asked about Watkins. “We’re seeing what he can do under pressure. I was really impressed with what he did tonight.”
Keefe also praised the recent performance by second-year big man Tristan Vukcevic, who has started five of the last six games.
“I think he’s made a big jump this year,” Keefe said. “He’s in the top percentile in terms of disrupting the game with steals and blocks. He gets his hand on a lot of balls. When you’re a big man, you are doing so much helping (on defense) then coming back to rebound. That shows part of his growth.”
Washington’s main issue has been on the defensive side of the ball where they are allowing 123 points a game, second most in the NBA. Houston is at the opposite end, ranking second in the NBA giving up just 109 points.
Houston has won six games in a row in the series, including a 135-112 win on Nov. 12. A win by Houston Monday would tie the all-time series at 82 wins apiece.
