James Ennis certainly appears to not lack for confidence.
One of the recent additions to the Houston Rockets has no doubt that his team can defeat the defending champion Golden State Warriors.
Here is what Ennis said to Alykhan Bijani of The Athletic:
I have a chip on my shoulder. I have a lot to prove. So this year,coming in, I’m just really focused on just being the player I can be and being someone Coach can put in at anytime and help. [We have] a lot of power. A lot of offensive power. A lot of defensive power. Bringing in Carmelo who is an offensive threat. Michael Carter Williams is a good guard, he can score the ball, his length. If everyone is healthy, we’ll definitely beat them [Golden State].
The Rockets team that will tip-off the 2018-19 will be quite different from the one that lost to the Warriors in seven games in the Western Conference Finals. Gone are Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute, who were critical to the Rockets’ defense on the perimter, but, along with Ryan Anderson who is also gone,also provided three-point shooting. They’ve been replaced by the aforementioned Ennis, Brandon Knight and 10-time All-Star Carmelo Anthony.
The Carmelo Anthony dynamic could be interesting, as his status as a starter or coming off the bench is still up in the air. Anthony has stated that is not a role he relishes at this time.
If head coach Mike D’Antoni and the Rockets can figure out how to mesh all these pieces together into a cohesive unit, there may be a chance they will not get their doors totally blown off by the defending champs should they encounter each other in the postseason.
