How best to use Alperen Sengun ? The answer is simple: by placing him low and giving him time to work with his back to the circle. Except that the Rockets want to move with a more fluid and fast offensive style, and therefore they would like to use it more on the move.
The two directions are opposite and from preseason, Stephen Silas had noticed the difficulty for the player to find the right balance. The coach knows that the needs of some do not necessarily match those of others…
“As we have diversity in our group, we can play in several ways. Afterwards, the problem is to choose one, especially for the incumbents »analyzes the coach for the Houston Chronicle. “Our five majors have changed. We have to make sure that Jalen Green touches the ball, the same for Kevin Porter Jr, and when Sengun starts, he also has to have balls. When you play fast and the ball circulates, it happens naturally. When it comes to systems or actions after time-outs, I try to distribute them. »
The key is there for the Houston coach. After the time-outs, he used to set up a system for the Turk, so that he plays low position. The player finally has ammo and the Rockets can then take full advantage of his ability to fix defenses near the circle.
“When we play in a more liberated way, he does not necessarily have the ball”, remarks the coach. “We have to make sure we play with our strength, at the post. I have to voluntarily bring the ball there. So every once in a while I call an action for him. Because otherwise, when we play, in the course of the game, he touches the ball very little. »
Alperen Sengun becomes very effective when he gets the ball in this position since he then scores 1.35 points on average (3.3 possessions in the post per game). No one is more prolific than him in the league and the Texan interior has averaged 17.5 points at 55% success in shooting for the four games he has started.
“They trust me right now”he assures. “I hold, I touch the ball more. I feel good, very good. This is my game, I’ve been doing this all my life. I can play against Ivica Zubac, Nikola Jokic or others. I know what I’m going to do when I get the low post ball. » Waiting to find out also elsewhere…
| Alperen Sengun | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2021-22 | HOO | 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 | HOO | 6 | 26 | 55.7 | 30.0 | 74.1 | 3.8 | 6.0 | 9.8 | 1.5 | 3.0 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 15.2 |
| Total | 78 | 21 | 48.3 | 25.2 | 71.4 | 2.1 | 3.7 | 5.8 | 2.5 | 3.0 | 0.8 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 10.0 | |
