Arriving this summer as free agents to take the Rockets to a new level, Fred VanVleet And Dillon Brooks have been in their roles since the start of the season, supervising the young Texan guard, notably composed of Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr, Amen Thompson And Alperen Sengun. If the first is a little less prominent than last season, Alperen Sengun is the revelation of this 2023-2024 financial year.
Heroic last night against Jazz, the Turkish pivot seems to have arrived at a new stage by averaging more than 20 points per game thanks to his exceptional offensive palette and his vision of the game. Something to catch the eye of Fred VanVleet , admiring his progress and his potential. .
“He is so talented”, notes the Canadian leader. “He is unstoppable. He has thousands of moves. He is currently discovering the most important aspects of the game as he is going to be a premier player and likely an All-Star this year. He's going to continue to rise through the ranks to become one of the greats, and that's something opponents will have to deal with every night. But yes, it’s a problem for others.”
Same thing for Dillon Brooks, who highlights the complete profile of his new teammate. “His attacking qualities are always there, every evening. His defense is coming, and we need him every night. This is our pivot. He is the backbone of our defense. And the more he understands this, the more he will improve.slipped the winger.
The win for engine
For Fred VanVleet, Alperen Sengun can still progress in defense and become a reference on this side of the floor, taking as an example a certain Marc Gasol, whom he worked with in Toronto.
“It’s a process. We talk a lot about defense. He's not the only one, but his biggest challenge has always been defense. He is capable of it. He is more than capable of it”added FVV. “I played with a guy named Marc Gasol, who was probably not half the athlete that Sengun is, and he was incredible.”
The Rockets' best scorer and rebounder, but also second passer, Alperen Sengun is aware of his room for improvement and that this will inevitably involve more impact and deterrence on defense. What motivates him above all, now that he has tasted it after two years of struggle, is winning.
“I have never been a defender in my career. I was still scoring. But if you want to be an All-Star and everything else, you have to know how to do everything.”he conceded. “Where I grew up, in a small town, my coaches were always bitching and swearing…I grew up in that atmosphere and now Ime is like that. Fred is like that. He's a player, but he's like a coach on the pitch. They just want us to learn and grow. They don’t want anything else (…). We don't like to lose. Nobody likes to lose. This is why we are going to fight.”
| Alperen Sengun | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2021-22 | HOU | 72 | 21 | 47.4 | 24.8 | 71.1 | 1.9 | 3.5 | 5.5 | 2.6 | 3.0 | 0.8 | 2.0 | 0.9 | 9.6 |
| 2022-23 | HOU | 75 | 29 | 55.3 | 33.3 | 71.5 | 3.2 | 5.8 | 9.0 | 3.9 | 3.4 | 0.9 | 2.6 | 0.9 | 14.8 |
| 2023-24 | HOU | 40 | 32 | 53.6 | 28.0 | 71.8 | 2.6 | 6.4 | 9.0 | 4.9 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 2.6 | 0.8 | 21.5 |
| Total | 187 | 27 | 52.7 | 27.7 | 71.5 | 2.6 | 5.1 | 7.7 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 1.0 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 14.2 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
