By the break, the rockets were fifth in the Western Conference, but there were chances to fight even for the second place, especially with such attack monsters as James Harden and Russell Westbrook, who, as time showed, found a common language on the floor. Houston had two matches in the training camp, where they lost first to Toronto (83-94) and then showed class in the match against Memphis (119-104). Of course, it is difficult to assess the form of the team in such a short period of time, although the leader of the team, “Beard” Harden, is serious. The Rockets will have their last preseason meeting against Boston, which will be a good rehearsal for the season restart.
Napoli did not participate in the championship race, unlike their today’s rival. The Neapolitans safely failed the first part of the season, getting out of the peak only with the arrival of Gennaro Gattuso. Moreover, the “parthenopeans” will not be able to get into the Champions League through Serie A. At the moment they are only seventh in the table and have no chance of making their way into the top four. Nevertheless, the victory in the Italian Cup ensured Napoli a ticket to the Europa League, so the team had a minimum of tournament motivation. Despite this, in the last round, the Neapolitans beat Sassuolo, who gained a powerful move, with a score of 2:0, thus gaining their 17th victory of the season and depriving the nerves of the chances of competing for European cups.
