Eric Gordon excited by vibe, culture of improving Rockets

Having signed with Houston in July 2016, reserve guard Eric Gordon is the longest-tenured member of the 2020-21 Rockets. Over his five seasons in Houston, the peak likely came in 2018, when the Rockets (65-17) won the most regular-season games in franchise history and easily led the entire NBA in record. That squad, which was led by James Harden and Chris Paul, went to the Western Conference Finals and was only a game away from knocking off eventual champion Golden State — only to have Paul’s hamstring go out at the worst time. In the regular season, the 2017-18 Rockets had two different winning streaks of more than 10 games (14 and 17). Though the current Rockets have won five straight, Gordon isn’t ready to compare this squad — which lacks proven superstars — to that loaded team from a few years ago. He does, however, see common traits in regards to the chemistry and culture within the Houston locker room. Following Sunday’s practice in Oklahoma City, Gordon said: You can see how hard we play. And it’s not just how hard we play; it’s fun when we play that way. We created an atmosphere; it’s been really good lately. It almost feels like a couple years ago, when we had multiple [10-game] winning streaks. Everybody has an unselfish attitude. When you see that, it creates a better vibe, more geared toward winning. Since trading Harden, Gordon is averaging 19.7 points (45.1% FG, 38.8% on 3-pointers) and 2.9 assists in 30.9 minutes per game. He and the Rockets (9-9) hope keep the good times rolling when they visit the Thunder (8-10) on Monday. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. Central. Basketball stat collect from isports API, for more details please visit www.isportsapi.com .