Trevor Ariza Is Making Houston Rockets Fans Forget About Chandler Parsons

The adage “sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good” is holding true for the Houston Rockets. Last summer, they had to “settle” for Trevor Ariza after losing Chandler Parsons to the Dallas Mavericks in free agency. But now, Rockets fans may be asking themselves, “Chandler who?”

Ariza has been a difference-maker for the Rockets on both sides of the ball and a key factor to the Rockets' red-hot 9-1 start to the season. The 6’8”, 200-pound wing has provided everything Houston could have wanted.

That was illustrated on Nov. 14 when the Rockets were hosting the Philadelphia 76ers.

At the time, the Rockets were leading the league in margin of victory with more than 11 per game. The Sixers were last, losing by an average of over 17. It was the perfect setup for the young Rockets to take their weaker opponents for granted. 

The Sixers, coming off a 53-point drubbing at the hand of the Dallas Mavericks, had their backs up and were playing for self-respect. They came out with one-tenth of the talent and 10 times the fight. And, as a result, they were leading most of the game.

The Rockets couldn’t hit a shot all night, going just 29-of-79 from the field. Their normally reliable three-point shooting wasn’t happening, burying only seven of their 34 attempts. It was the type of game where if there’s a 50-50 chance that something will go right, there’s a 100-percent chance it will go wrong.

Such games are often salvaged by defense, and the 29-year-old Ariza was pivotal in turning what should have been a loss into a win. With four minutes, 49 seconds left in the game, he stole the ball from Tony Wroten, tipping the ball to James Harden, then came down and buried the three-pointer off the trailing pass form the bearded one.

A bit later, there were 36 seconds left, and the Rockets were down by one. Michael Carter-Williams had the ball, and Ariza had the defense. Carter-Williams dribbled left, and Ariza cut him off. The reigning Rookie of the Year tried to go right, utilizing a pick, but Ariza went under it, met Carter-Williams on the other side and forced the turnover with 16 seconds left.

Harden hit the game-winner seven seconds later.

The Defense

It was a win that wouldn't have been possible without the defense of Ariza.

In fact, the Rockets are sitting on the league’s second-best record in large part because, per NBA.com, they are also owners of the league’s lowest defensive rating: 91.5.

Ariza is a huge aspect of that. He’s on seven of the Rockets' eight best defensive lineups. The Rockets’ defensive rating is 89.1 when he’s on the court and 98.4 when he’s off it.

Tasked with the job of defending the other team’s best perimeter player, he’s held opponents to 5.3 percent below their regular field-goal percentage and a whopping 10.2 percent under their three-point percentage.

He’s keeping them away from the rim too, giving up just 0.9 shots within six feet of the rim per game. His adversary is attempting 64.4 percent of his shots from at least 15 feet away and making just 36.9 percent of them.

As if that weren’t enough, Ariza is also tied for seventh in the league in steals. And the low rate of field goals allowed inside suggests that’s not the result of gambling on passing lanes, as is often the case with the league leaders.

In short, Ariza has been a stopper, and that’s something you need in an elite defense.

The Offense

Don’t get trapped in the impression that this is all about the defense, though. It’s not like Ariza hasn’t been an effective third option for the Rockets this season. Harden and Dwight Howard are the superstars, but Ariza has been helpful on that end too.

Player	Season	TRB	AST	STL	BLK	PTS	TS%	PER	WS/48
Trevor Ariza	2014-15	5.9	2.4	1.9	0.0	14.9	.599	15.9	0.209
Chandler Parsons	2014-15	4.6	2.1	0.9	0.5	14.0	50.7%	15.6	0.107
Chandler Parsons	2013-14	5.5	4.0	1.2	0.4	16.6	56.5%	15.9	0.131

Compare his numbers this year with Parson’s—both last season with the Rockets and this season with the Mavericks.

Parsons gave the Rockets 2.1 more points and 1.5 more assists, but Ariza has the same player efficiency rating. He has more rebounds. His true shooting percentage is higher, and he’s providing more win shares per 48 minutes. And this year, even his passing and scoring numbers are better than Parsons’.

The move from Parsons to Ariza is, at worst, a wash. You can even argue it’s been a slight upgrade based on efficiency.

The Future

And considering the difference in contracts, it gets even better. Parsons’ deal was three years for $46 million. Ariza inked a four-year, $32 million deal. Ergo, Ariza is only costing half as much per season.

In July, general manager Daryl Morey told the media, as reported by CBS Houston:

"

Once Bosh said ‘no’ it put us into another very difficult decision of, is matching Chandler Parsons, do we have a better chance of winning a title by matching it or not matching it. That comes down to a very simple question, is Harden, Howard, Parsons a three that can be a championship three? I actually think it can be. I think Chandler is a great player, getting better. Really really good player, no doubt. But the question is actually: is Harden Howard Parson, is that three a better championship odds than Harden, Howard and the team we can put together with a guaranteed lottery pick trade exceptions mid-level young team improving and continuing to be flexible? That was the very tough decision before us. But I can tell you this, in our opinion it was not close.

We are in a better [place] to win a championship by not matching it, once Bosh goes away than by not matching it.

"

Morey’s argument holds water. Next summer, per HoopsHype.com, the Rockets have $55.1 million on the books. According to Dan Feldman of Pro Basketball Talk, the salary cap is expected to go up to about $66 million. By doing a little wheeling and dealing (e.g. trading Terrence Jones and/or Kostas Papanikolaou), Morey could open up another $6 to $8 million and create room for a max player.

The Rockets are already looking like contenders. But with the way they have managed cap space, there’s a lot of room to get even better. Imagine next offseason adding Rajon Rondo or Reggie Jackson? Current starter Patrick Beverley is a defensive beast but is challenged offensively.

Charles Krupa/Associated Press

Regardless of what happens, the Rockets are in a position to improve in ways they wouldn’t be next summer.

The Rockets are already a more superior team with Ariza than they were with Parsons. The prospect that they could get even better—perhaps even than they would have been with the addition of Chris Bosh—should make the sting of losing their former player go away.

And perhaps, in its place, a warm, fuzzy feeling can start to grow.

Stats for this article were obtained from NBA.com/STATS and Basketball-Reference.com. They are current through Nov. 16.