HOUSTON -- Houston's acquisition of guard Vernon Maxwell from San Antonio three months ago may well prove to be one of the best deals ever made by the Rockets.
Maxwell was acquired from the Spurs Feb. 21 for cash only, and that sum reportedly was about $25,000. Since the transaction, the 6-foot-5 guard has moved into Houston's starting lineup and is their leading scorer in the playoffs, averaging 23.3 points a game.
Maxwell is also one big reason the Rockets are still playing. His 26-point scoring performance Tuesday enabled Houston to beat Los Angeles 114-108 and prevent the Lakers from sweeping the first-round NBA playoff series.
The Lakers still lead the best-of-five series, 2-1, and will attempt to end the series in Game 4 Thursday at the Summit.
Houston worked out Wednesday, but the Lakers gathered only for a team meeting to watch films.
'This is nothing unusual,' said Lakers guard Earvin 'Magic' Johnson. 'If we had practice, we probably would have just walked through the plays. What we needed to do was look at films and see what happened.'
Los Angeles, which lost a first-round playoff game for the first time since 1981, had a string of 20 straight first-round wins ended Tuesday. Houston, though, still faces an uphill battle. Only two teams, the 1956 Fort Wayne Pistons and 1987 Golden State Warriors, have battled back from a 2-0 deficit to win a first-round series.
But the Rockets have the kind of team that could make the series interesting.
'Houston as the eighth team (in the Western Conference) is an aberration,' said Lakers Coach Pat Riley. 'They are finally getting the nucleus together and playing well at the right time. They are not the eighth-seeded team in talent.'
One reason for Houston's success has been the play of Maxwell, who was playing so well coming off the bench, Houston Coach Don Chaney started him the last 10 games of the regular season to help the team get off to better starts. The Rockets were 6-4 in those games.
'He was a steal for Houston,' Riley said. 'They traded him for cash? Cash cannot play. Why they did that, I don't know. I was very surprised San Antonio would trade him to a rival in their own conference. It's proven to be a very good deal for the Rockets. He's been a very valuable acquisition.'
Maxwell said he was happy to leave San Antonio, but would not elaborate.
'It was one of the best things that ever happened to me,' Maxwell said. 'It was a breath of fresh air for me. I wanted to make the most of it. The biggest thing was I felt confident I could help this team.'
The main contribution Maxwell has made has been in taking pressure off guard Eric 'Sleepy' Floyd, who was inconsistent because of the overall weakness at the guard position. But with Maxwell around, Floyd has been able to play his game.
'There's no question he helped this team,' Floyd said. 'It took some time for us to get to know each other on the court, but now we're starting to feel comfortable about what we're doing.'
Maxwell has also been a spark defensively, playing a strong game against Johnson.
'I just try to harass him and contain,' Maxwell said. 'I want him to play defense as well as offense.'
Houston Coach Don Chaney is glad the Rockets acquired Maxwell.
'It may be very close to a Brink's job,' Chaney said. 'Teams try to sag off Vernon and protect the baseline, so he has had to hit the open shot. He really has been a shot in the arm for us.'
