The Ascension of Rockets Star Alperen Sengun

The young center has emerged this season.

Dec 1, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) dribbles the ball during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The Houston Rockets have reached a new level this season, largely due to their impressive defense, effort and rebounding. They’ve also been driven by an individual player reaching a new level as Alperen Sengun has pushed his game to new heights this season.

He has more levels to reach, but he’s already proven to be the team’s best player for the past several seasons. There are a few places where he's elevated his ability that has been evident this season.

His most influential growth has come on the defensive side of the ball. The Rockets have a top-three ranked defense featuring a few players that could have been considered net negatives on that end a few years ago. Sengun was one of those players, but he’s now the anchor of one of the best defenses in the league.

What changed for the big man? First, the defensive schemes he finds himself in are much different. He is no longer forced to live in drop coverage, falling victim to speedy and skilled guards who place him in a vulnerable position in the paint. Instead, head coach Ime Udoka has trusted the Turkish big man to switch, rush and contain ball handlers on screen attempts. 

The eye test shows that Sengun’s lateral foot speed has improved greatly. He has always played with solid anticipation, but he seems to have grown the physical ability to put himself in the right spots as fast as he can read the play. 

Once he gets to the spot, he has also improved at limiting his fouls when contesting shots at the rim. He is a certified threat in deep, blocking shots with some surprising explosiveness from the ground. Even when he isn’t blocking shots, he has gotten much better at contesting without fouling. Rampant fouling was previously a fatal flaw in his defense, but he has taken the challenge and improved his level of success on that end of the floor.

His defense isn’t the only spot in his game that has improved as his offense has also taken a step forward. While he isn’t scoring as much as he did during his career-high year last season, the real improvement has come with his offensive versatility. He has shown a varied scoring repertoire this season, making buckets at tough angles under the basket and hitting jumpers and floaters further from the rim. He has also shown a threat at the three-point line. It’s not consistent as of yet, but he’s a willing shooter. He no longer hesitates at the three-point line, and even his drives from that spot seem more decisive. 

He has just gotten more creative with his scoring, and he has more tools to convey his creativity on the court. He’s an artist at this point, which makes it ironic that his best work is in the paint.

Scoring is just one layer of his offensive game that has improved this year. His passing has increased to such a high level, averaging a career-high 5.3 assists per game. He also nearly has the fewest turnovers per game of his career with 2.1 per game, bested only by his rookie season.

He seems comfortable playing as the connective tissue for an offense that prides itself for its committee approach. He has hit double-digit assists three times this season and likely could have more if his teammates start hitting their shots more consistently. But the Rockets seem content making him the hub the offense operates around. He can’t do everything on his own, but his aforementioned anticipation and his offensive intelligence make him a solid foundation for the offensive attack Houston has built this season.

Sengun’s improvement has been a key factor in this team’s ascension. The Rockets seem to have found a player that they can focus their attack around on both sides of the ball as he has further solidified himself as the team’s best player.

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