Although a few days late, James Harden made his new season debut on Saturday, leading the broken Houston Rockets to challenge the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center. After 58 minutes of competition, the Rockets lost 128-126.

The Rockets missed multiple key players including John Wall, Eric Gordon and DeMarcus Cousins because of the NBA's COVID-19 protocols and thus could send no more than 9 players to the floor on Saturday. Meanwhile, many had doubts over Harden's form, thanks to all that trade request drama during the off season.

Such doubts burst like bubbles as the game began. Harden delivered eight assists in the first quarter taking advantage of Portland's trapping defense. When the opponents began to question their defensive tactics, Harden turned on his scoring mode, getting 11 and 12 points in Q2 and Q4 respectively. Having played a total of 43 minutes, Harden dropped 44 points and 17 assists. He also made 13 of the 16 attempts on the free throw line.

One of the most important deals Houston made during the offseason, Christian Wood also proved he's worth every dollar of his three-year, $41-million contract. Wood scored 33 points at 63.6 percent of field goal rate while grabbing court-high 13 rebounds. His excellent finishing ability gave Houston another option than shooting obsessively from the 3-point line.

It would have been such a perfect season opener for Harden and the Rockets if his pass to P.J. Tucker had not been intercepted by Robert Covington in the last possession.

"I was just trying to make a quick decision. Once I got in the paint, they did a good job of using their high hands...If (P.J.) crept in, he would've had a layup...I'll watch the film and get better at it," Harden told Alykhan Bijani of The Athletic after the game.

To be fair, Friday's victory also came from the brilliant performance of the Trail Blazers. C.J. McCollum matched Harden's work by putting down 44 points and 8 assists. McCollum went 9-16 from the arc and the last one was made 6.3 seconds before the end, putting the Trail Blazers back on top 128-126.

Damian Lillard also had 32 points, 5 rebounds and 9 assists. Though he failed to beat the buzzer at the end of Q4, it was Lillard's 21 points that helped Rip City go through the difficulty in the first half.

Atlanta Hawks 122-112 Memphis Grizzlies

If one must be picked as the best rookie point guard in today's league, it must be between Trae Young and Ja Morant. They led their teams, the Hawks and the Grizzlies, to meet at FedExForum on Friday.

Compared with Young, Morant boasts bigger size and better athleticism. Morant is also a better defender and probably a better orchestrator. Nonetheless, he was outshined by Young in Friday's game.

Young had really cold hands as he went 10-24 in field goals and 1-7 behind the triple line. However, he still managed to drop 36 points and 9 assists, all thanks to the 15 out of 17 free throws he made. The last one who could score like this was Harden.

The Hawks only led 113-110 when there were less than two minutes left in the game. Young held the ball, launched and beat Grayson Allen to make an easy jelly. Then in the next possession. Young faced Morant and again broke into the paint, scoring another two points in a similar way. The two shots he made killed the game for the Hawks.

The Hawks made quite a number of transactions during the off season, aiming to make a change this season. Nonetheless, Rajon Rondo and Danilo Gallinari, whom the team landed with two generous deals, sat on Saturday’s game because of injury. So did Onyeka Okongwu, the No. 6 selection in this year’s draft. Furthermore, Clint Capela who was traded to the Hawks last season, did not play either. Capela has not made any appearance for the team since his arrival.

That meant Young still has to carry Atlanta's offense like he did in the past two seasons. His 73 points and 31 free throws have brought two straight wins to the team so far. Last season, he averaged 29.6 points and 9.3 assists, joining Oscar Robertson, Harden, Russell Westbrook and Nate Archibald to become the fifth player to reach 29+9 in one season. Robertson, Harden and Westbrook all won the MVP award. Archibald became a Hall of Famer. Does Young have what it takes to do either of those?

Other games on Saturday (away teams come first):

Oklahoma City Thunder 109-107 Charlotte Hornets

Cleveland Cavaliers 128-109 Detroit Pistons

Orlando Magic 130-120 Washington Wizards

Philadelphia 76ers 109-89 New York Knicks

Indiana Pacers 125-106 Chicago Bulls

Toronto Raptors 114-119 San Antonio Spurs

Minnesota Timberwolves 116-111 Utah Jazz

Phoenix Suns 103-106 Sacramento Kings