James: We're Confident We Can Defeat the Warriors and Win the Championship This Year

The Rockets also failed to handle Cousins's emotional issues in the second half.

In the third quarter, Cousins cursed after a defensive foul and was assessed his second Technical Foul, resulting in his ejection. The game was effectively decided early.

Although Harden went on a wild scoring spree in the final quarter to help the team close the gap, it was too late.

In the end, the Pelicans defeated the Rockets 113–103 at home, claiming victory in this Christmas Day Game.

Tang Tian led the team with 32 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists. Davis added 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Jokic contributed 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists.

Harden put up an empty 41 points and 6 assists. The Rockets had assembled a Big Three this season, yet they had lost to both the Warriors and the Pelicans. He was showing every sign of becoming the president of the Empty Stats Club.

Paul also recorded a Double-Double with 20 points and 11 assists. Cousins played only 13 minutes after being ejected, finishing with 15 points and 6 rebounds.

After the game, Pelicans fans celebrated their Christmas victory wildly at home. By comparison, the Rockets' departing figures looked somewhat desolate.

The Rockets had been in good form during their Seven-game winning streak, and they had displayed more than enough strength over the first quarter and a half of this game.

But if they truly wanted to go further, they still needed to sort out the relationships among their Big Three.

Still, Harden remained full of confidence in the team at the postgame press conference.

"The season has only been underway for two months. We still have time to build chemistry and adjust a lot of things. I'm looking forward to the next game, and to meeting the Pelicans