With 14 victories for 6 defeats, the Rockets are in an astonishing 2nd place in the West, and the leaders' project is seriously taking shape. After a superb end to last season, finished at the foot of the “play-in”, Ime Udoka's players continue with the same momentum, and this continuity is based in particular on a starting five which does not move. He is very classic with Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Jabari Smith Jr and Alperen Sengun. It's the five type, and no question of touching it in Houston.
“There is continuity and transmission, and then there is cohesion and experience,” VanVleet note. “The other thing is guys are getting better. Bari (Jabari Smith Jr.) came back better, Alpi (Alperen Şengün) came back better. Jalen came back better. Me and Dillon (Brooks) are the veterans of the group. We always work on our game during the summer. We just learned to play together and continued to progress. »
A five as effective in attack as in defense
Like the Thunder or even the Cavaliers, the Rockets progress together over several seasons, and this stability is bearing fruit. “I think the pieces are coming together. There's a difference between having parts and trying to make them work, and having a process to determine what works and what doesn't. I think that's what we're going through. We have something good here,” continues the Rockets leader.
According to the Houston Chronicle, the Rockets' five has the 3rd best differential in the entire NBA, behind those of the Celtics and the Cavaliers. It's also the best defensive five in the entire league! And when a player goes through it, like Dillon Brooks recently, Ime Udoka maintains his confidence in him. For the former Celtics coach, it is important not to sanction a player who is going through a bad patch.
A coach who maintains his confidence in bad times
“I don't overreact when a player plays poorly for a few games or anything,” Udoka confirms. “Players go through ups and downs, and we experienced that at the start of the season. But we want to give the guys a chance to stay confident, to show that we have confidence in them and that they can get their rhythm back by shooting or impacting the game in different ways. So I'm not going to react impulsively. »
And then, like his colleagues, Udoka reminds that the most important thing is the five who ends the matches, and not the one who starts them. “It's almost more important who finishes the game, anyway. It depends on the players and the parties. There is good continuity with our first five. I think you saw it last year. The players have difficult times sometimes, but I think they eventually find solutions. At the start of the season, Jalen, Fred and Alpi weren't shooting as well. We know they are going to get out of this situation, and I think they did it quickly. »
| Shots | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Bp | Int | Ct | Party | Pts |
| Jalen Green | 20 | 32.1 | 39.4 | 31.7 | 86.7 | 0.6 | 4.3 | 4.8 | 2.7 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 1.8 | 19.4 |
| Alperen Sengun | 20 | 30.4 | 47.5 | 26.7 | 76.5 | 3.5 | 7.3 | 10.7 | 5.1 | 2.2 | 1.2 | 1.3 | 2.8 | 18.7 |
| Fred Vanvleet | 19 | 34.9 | 38.9 | 32.4 | 80.0 | 0.6 | 3.8 | 4.4 | 6.3 | 1.3 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 2.4 | 15.1 |
| Dillon Brooks | 20 | 30.9 | 40.8 | 37.6 | 83.3 | 1.3 | 2.2 | 3.5 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 3.1 | 12.4 |
| Amen Thompson | 20 | 26.7 | 57.6 | 30.0 | 73.4 | 2.2 | 4.9 | 7.0 | 2.1 | 1.8 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 2.5 | 11.9 |
| Jabari Smith, Jr. | 20 | 28.6 | 44.9 | 36.0 | 86.7 | 1.9 | 4.6 | 6.5 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 11.9 |
| Tari Eason | 20 | 22.7 | 49.7 | 32.1 | 77.1 | 2.1 | 4.2 | 6.3 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 2.1 | 1.1 | 2.5 | 11.4 |
| Cam Whitmore | 8 | 9.9 | 37.5 | 4.8 | 62.5 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1.1 | 5.9 |
| Jock Landale | 14 | 11.1 | 44.7 | 50.0 | 52.6 | 1.4 | 1.9 | 3.3 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 3.9 |
| Aaron Holiday | 11 | 8.7 | 45.2 | 39.1 | 71.4 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 3.8 |
| Reed Sheppard | 20 | 11.9 | 36.7 | 35.7 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 3.7 |
| Steven Adams | 9 | 11.4 | 53.3 | 0.0 | 42.9 | 1.3 | 1.4 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 1.7 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 1.4 | 2.4 |
| Jeff Green | 7 | 5.7 | 53.8 | 37.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 2.4 |
| Nate Williams, Jr. | 3 | 3.3 | 75.0 | 50.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.3 |
| Jae'sean Tate | 8 | 4.8 | 58.3 | 0.0 | 57.1 | 0.4 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.9 | 2.3 |
| Jack McVeigh | 6 | 3.6 | 27.3 | 25.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 1.3 |
