The Houston Rockets turned the debilitating loss of burgeoning star center Alperen Sengun, who missed the final 18 games last season with knee and ankle injuries, into a period of discovery that propelled an unexpected pursuit of a playoff berth and reshaped their philosophy offensively.
With Sengun sidelined, the Rockets leaned fully into a faster pace spurred by guard Jalen Green. Houston reeled off an 11-game win streak in March — Sengun sat the final nine games — while Green averaged 30.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists to fuel the surge.
Committed to the hastened pace they established late last season, the Rockets will open the 2024-25 campaign Wednesday by hosting the Charlotte Hornets.
Houston will do so with both Sengun and Green signed to extensions beyond their rookie contracts, after Sengun agreed to a five-year, $185 million deal on Monday hours after Green signed a three-year, $105.3 million pact.
Incorporating Sengun, a gifted post player lacking plus athleticism, into their up-tempo offense will yield fits and spurts. The transition turnovers committed this preseason proved as much.
“We understand playing at a faster pace, some of that is going to happen,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “But we’ve got to clean that up and have certain guys look a little more comfortable in transition when they’re pushing and handling it.”
After clawing their way to a .500 finish and ending a string of three consecutive losing seasons, the Rockets find themselves on the brink of the proverbial next step. Their roster is teeming with young talent, and a quartet of veterans — Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, Jeff Green and Steven Adams — are available to serve as a bedrock for the foundation developed around Green and Sengun in addition to Jabari Smith Jr., Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore.
The preseason was the first step toward the future. The regular season is a different ballgame.
“Continue to build on what we’ve been doing,” Udoka said. “Start to fine-tune on the things that worked well in the preseason.”
While the Hornets open the season as a consensus bottom-five team in most power rankings, there is some promising development on the margins.
Point guard LaMelo Ball has labored against lingering ankle injuries but his star potential is undeniable. Center Mark Williams has struggled with injuries as well but offers upside and, like Ball, is entering his age-23 season.
Second-year forward Brandon Miller turns 22 next month. He finished third in Rookie of the Year voting last year and has showcased the initiative to improve upon his prodigious two-way talent.
“He’s taken his player development meeting to heart,” Hornets coach Charles Lee said. “All the areas we’ve hit him on on both sides of the ball, he’s aware of them, and he’s trying to be intentional about how he plays in addressing them.
“I think he’s in a really good place hunting 3s, both catch-and-shoot and off the dribble, and also playmaking offensively in just taking what the defense gives you. He’s actually found other ways to either get himself some 3-point opportunities or also get his teammates some 3-point opportunities and also just getting himself to the basket.”
