Jalen Green was having a solid season until March, averaging 17.9 points per game while shooting 40.4% from the field. He had made some strides on the defensive end but still hadn’t exploded onto the scene as a former No. 2 overall pick, Joe Wolfond of TheScore.com writes.
That was until March, when Green then averaged 24.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.1 assists per night while shooting 46.1% from the field and 37.0% from beyond the arc in his final 23 games of the season. As Wolfond notes, it wasn’t empty production during the late part of the season, as the Rockets went 13-2 in March.
Green hasn’t yet been extended, however, and reports of Houston’s interest in Kevin Durant or other potential superstars down the line make it seem like the team is open to shaking up the core. As Wolfond writes, this season will be instrumental in determining whether the Rockets will or should commit long-term to the duo of Alperen Sengun and Green, as well as what sort of role Green will carry into the future.
We have more from the Southwest Division:
- It might be hard for Rockets forward Jae’Sean Tate to find minutes in 2024, with Tari Eason returning from injury and serving as the primary forward defender off the bench, Rahat Huq of Forbes writes. Tate might crack the rotation if he’s able to become a more reliable shooter in his age-29 season. However, the Rockets brought him back along with the likes of Jock Landale and Jeff Green and could combine salaries of some of their lower-minutes players (around $28MM) to match contracts in trades.
- By waiving Mamadi Diakite, the Grizzlies are preserving their 15th roster spot for future flexibility, Damichael Cole of Memphis Commercial Appeal writes. The club could use that spot for a depth piece in the event of injuries or could leave it open until later in the season to ensure team salary doesn’t surpass the luxury tax line.
- In case you missed it, Matt Ryan is re-joining the Pelicans on a restructured deal for training camp but it does not contain Exhibit 10 language. The contract is a non-guaranteed, minimum-salary Exhibit 9 deal. That means his deal can’t be converted to a two-way contract. The Pelicans’ standard roster stands at 15 players.
How can Rockets allocate the minutes to 13 players?
Rockets have 13 players depth:
7 young talents: 4 top-4 picks, Witmore, Eason, Sengun
2 Vet Starters: VanVleet, Brooks
4 supporting casts: Jeff Green, Aaron Holiday, Landale, Tate
7 wings players minutes allocation
Jalen Green
Brooks
Sheppard
Witmore
Eason
Holiday
Tate
Wing players may not be happy with playing time
My Assumption
Jalen Green: 26 minutes – contract year
Brooks: 24 minutes
Sheppard: 12
Witmore: 12
Eason: 12
Holiday 5
Tate 5
Forgot
Rockets have Center Steven Adams –
14 men depth
Overpaying Green is a mistake. Watch them do it though…
He is still developing and has shown flashes of becoming a star, if he keeps that up this season I dont see how that would be an overpay
Green is going to be a star. Rockets coach is overrated……
Who do you go with if green and sengun don’t figure it out of the court together? You’ve got people who could replace green, less so for sengun, but letting go of a star is gonna be tough.
Rockets will be fine either way. Should be interesting!
As of right now I don’t think either player is worth the max, Green is a high volume shooter but inefficient scorer. Sengun has shown more ability and consistency but still the lack of defence is a concern.
Both players haven’t had any team success together and in a very small sample size the only success they have had is without Sengun and Green was the go to guy.
I think what I’d actually like to see is them going for a younger star, not a KD level superstar but more like a Cade Cunningham, Franz Wagner, Scottie Barnes type dude. You’ve got salaries, young players and picks.
I understand it wouldn’t be easy especially with their contract situations (PPP) but depending on how their respective teams perform I wouldn’t be surprised if they got made available.
Scottie in particular would be my main target.
Think if your building for the now and the future a team of Reed Ausar/Whitmore Scottie Jabari and Sengun would be very tough. Defensively it ticks the boxes as it would offensively too.
DBrooks from Canada returns home, throw in Green, Tari, picks …
Green, Eason, brooks and picks for Barnes is an overpay. Also don’t see why Toronto would want to trade him fresh off the extension
It’s a long season so there are plenty of minutes to go around. I think the end of bench guys that won’t get much, if any run, are Holiday, Tate, Landale, and maybe Uncle Jeff, although I think he’ll still have a role. I think Griffen and Shepard won’t get much run early on either, but Shepard will probably earn more minutes as the season goes on, griffin I’m not so sure. I think the rest of the team will see heavier minutes, with guys who are playing better earning the most. It’s funny to see people saying that having too many good players is a bad thing. It’s an 82 game season and you need depth to make it to the end in a good position, so clearly some people don’t know basketball
Do not know how will use everyone. Jalen, Brooks, Jabari, FV, Sengun starters.
Tari, Amen, Cam, Adams, Griffin, Reed
Then have Landale, Green, Holiday, Tate
Landale, Tate and Green could use to get something but not sure if a time when would have to decide on Sengun or Green. But want the team to do what is good for them. I hope Reed does get time or fair time. Plus if do use the 28 million to do something we use wisely on someone that will work.
TexGal , I agree, not enough PT available for all these young players. It feels like a “high class” problem until the inevitable time when you realize the talented young players have last their trade value because they’ve sat on the bench for too long.
The 5 starters you mention deserve 32 mpg minutes.
Whitmore, Amen, Tari, and Reed all figure to get less than 12 mpg as a result. That’s a huge problem.