Kevin Durant welcomes Rockets’ frustration after 0-2 start
kd-welcomes-rockets-frustration-after-0-2-start
HOUSTON — Kevin Durant said the Houston Rockets are “pissed off” following their second narrow defeat of the young season, a 115-111 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Friday night that dropped the club to 0-2.
“Coaching staff is pissed off, players are pissed off,” the star forward told reporters after the home opener at Toyota Center. “We want a better outcome, and it’s early, too. So for us to feel that way, I like that kind of energy.”
Durant scored 37 points on 9-of-18 shooting and made 16 of 18 free throws, but his performance — witnessed courtside by Rockets legends Yao Ming and Hakeem Olajuwon — was not enough to secure the team’s first victory. The setback mirrored Houston’s season-opening 125-124 double-overtime loss to the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Rockets trailed 113-111 in the final 30 seconds when Durant, doubled after a pick-and-roll, fed Alperen Şengun. Şengun’s attempt was blocked by Detroit forward Paul Reed, and Pistons guard Cade Cunningham iced the game with two free throws 16 seconds from the end.
Durant acknowledged he is still weighing when to dominate and when to involve teammates. He scored 14 of Houston’s 25 fourth-quarter points; no other Rocket had more than three in the period. “I got aggressive and made them double me, and I think we got some good looks,” he said.
Guard Amen Thompson echoed the urgency. “We haven’t played a good game yet,” he said. “We have championship-level expectations, so we’re trying to play our best game every game.”
Houston entered the season as last year’s Western Conference No. 2 seed and carried 14-1 odds to win the NBA title, per ESPN BET. Durant, who signed a two-year, $90 million extension with the Rockets on Sunday, is averaging 30.0 points on 53% shooting and hitting 43% of his threes through two games.
Source: ESPN
