Top 5 things im looking forward to seeing this upcoming season

After a very long summer. The Rockets look to kick off the 2022-23 season tonight with their first preseason game against the Spurs with opening night just around the corner. However, while other teams are focusing on contention or making the playoffs, the Rockets are coming off the first sub back to back 30 win seasons since 1984 and are likely headed for a 3rd straight one. However, with sucking comes good draft picks and the Rockets over the past 2 years have built up one of the best young cores in the league as they are finally starting to find a direction after the end of the Harden era. Here are 5 of our young players that I will be paying the most attention to specifically and cheering for their success

**5. The STEAL of the Draft???**

Coming into the draft in my personal mock, I placed Kentucky and All-SEC point guard TyTy Washington in the low teens and early 20s and so did alot of other people, which is why it was such a shock when the Rockets managed to pick him up at 29 through a draft night trade. It’s honestly wild to me how he was seen as the best PG in the draft and a top 10 pick before his ankle injury and I personally already think that he’s gonna be a major steal

Looking at his game, he’s really the perfect floor general for the NBA. He’s a pristine passer, great decision making, wizard in the PnR, can score from all 3 levels, can play both on and off the ball, can contribute defensively, and all wrapped up in an excellent frame (6’4 with a 6’9 wingspan). Due to his lack of athleticism, its hard to really see anything more than a quality starter but when picking in the low 1st round, sometimes, it’s better to take the role player. I think he should probably start out in the G-league but I expect him to shine there and quickly demand NBA minutes where he can be like a Tyus Jones type PG which is exactly what this team needs given the lack of a traditional floor general

[Watch TyTy break fellow Rockets legend John Wall’s 17 assist record by running the Pick and Roll like a 10 year vet much less a college freshman](https://youtu.be/yaI5fkHZVlU)

**4. Alpy Time**

When looking at the Christian Wood trade, I think the Rockets did very well. Wood really didn’t have a place on the team anymore with us bringing in a new PF and he deserves to go and compete so getting a 1st was fine value. However, the biggest winner of the trade has to be Alperen Sengun

Due to conditioning and being a bad fit with Wood, Sengun was pretty limited in minutes last year but even in the time he did play, he flashed star glimpses. For a 19 year old to throw some of the passes and flash the foot work Sengun showed wasn’t normal and now, as the full time starting center slotted for 25-30 minutes per game, Sengun should have ample opportunity for a break out season and live up to some of the monster per 36 numbers from last year as he quarterbacks the offense out of the post for Jalen and Jabari while hopefully improving his range and defense

[Sengun is a man against boys despite the ages being reversed! Great Eurobasket from him despite the early exit](https://youtu.be/4k4e3sCL-FI)

**3. KPJ Breakout SZN!**

I think the undisputed most controversial player on the roster is 3rd year starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. There are alot of cons with him like the off-court issues, inconsistency, not being a “real” PG, and how him and Jalen Green can coexist together. However, his talent is undeniable

You just will not find many 21 year olds with his combination of physicals, shot creation, and passing. The 3 most important traits for a guard to have. He gets too much flack for his early season struggles given the bad spacing and injuries he sustained but in the last 35 games when he was allowed to get in a rhythm, he averaged 18/4/7 on 57% TS and combined this with being an elite 3 point creator (given his volume and shot diet) as well as a massively improved and even plus defender at this point

With it being a contract year, 2nd full year in Houston, starter, with Jalen, and PG, as well as Wood being gone, im expecting a breakout season from KPJ as he proves the hates wrong, becoming an invaluable piece in the young core

[KPJ’s best game of the season, becoming the 9th player under 22 years old since 2010 to log a 30 point triple double. 8 of these players went on to make all-star teams, 7 have made all-NBAs](https://youtu.be/gG3s-noZs3Y)

**2. Soon to be the best defensive duo in the NBA**

The Rockets made 3 picks in the 2022 NBA draft, we talked about TyTy, now on to the other two…

First Jabari Smith. Even as someone who was looking forward to taking Paolo, I am not at all disappointed by this pick as we have received a 6’10 athletic wing who can be one of the best shooters in the NBA while being to realistically defend the 1-5 (and that’s actually a qualification that I call people out on for assigning way too loosely so its really saying something). At minimum, This is one of the best role players in the NBA but I think he can be a Rashard Lewis or 2 way MPJ type which is a perennial all-star level guy in the modern NBA

And we also picked up the 2nd steal of the draft in Tari Eason at 17. I was ecstatic when he slipped to us in draft night and its not hard to see why. His physicals are absolutely insane (remind me of a young Kawhi) and so does his playstyle being a disruptive multi positional defender that flies around the court and locks down the perimeter. We even saw him being an offensive threat in SL averaging 17 ppg on good efficiency and taking home 1st team honors

But where it really gets interesting is putting these two together. I know I originally said this would only cover 5 players but the defensive potential of Tari and Jabari is nuts and I wasn’t kidding when I wrote that title. These two are gonna be absolute hell on opposing PnR ball handlers as I can already see them calling on a switch from Tari just to land with Jabari on you instead. Especially with guys like Tate, Garuba, and Christopher backing them up, these two should go a long way to fix Houston’s horrific defense

[Footage of the duo in action. Already putting mfs in jail](https://twitter.com/arxanii/status/1546693439030546432?s=20&t=uy3HV3DvgjzuUayX_MLpww)

But while we’re covering the surrounding group, we can’t forget about the main man of the squad

**1.** **Jalen Green UNLEASHED**

While 2nd overall pick Jalen Green had a disappointing start to the season. In his first 17 games, he averaged just 14 ppg on horrid 37% shooting and 26% from 3. His wonky shot form was inconsistent, he couldn’t get to the rim due to a loose handle and scrawny frame, he was being bodied on defense, and he could barely read the floor. However, Jalen had one of the biggest rookie turnarounds in recent memory much like Anthony Edwards the year before him as post ASB, he averaged 22 ppg on 48% shooting from the field and a blistering 39% from 3 on 8 attempts. He then ended the season with a historic scoring streak that saw him match Allen Iverson for the most consecutive 30 point games by a rookie in the last 40 years and then end the season with not only his first 40 bomb but the only one in the entire class.

His combination of elite shooting, top tier athleticism, and prodigal skill makes him unguardable on the floor and he’s also expanded his all around game alot last season and should showcase some more flashes this year. I expect him to put up 20 ppg, show improved defense and playmaking, and overall look like the future superstar the Rockets took on draft night

[Couldn’t script a better ending to the season if you tried](https://youtu.be/8lUaEvOfdMA)

by Few_Mulberry7175