Alperen Sengun Slowly Becoming One of the Best Centers In the NBA

Sengun has been a force for the Houston Rockets this season.

Nov 20, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) drives to the basket as Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) defends during the second quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The Houston Rockets have a franchise star in Alperen Sengun. Drafted in 2021, Sengun showed great improvement through his first three seasons, going from 9.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game in his rookie year to 21.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game last season.

This season, Sengun's scoring has taken a dip with his minutes. In a perplexing move, head coach Ime Udoka is currently playing him under 30 minutes per game. Because of this, Sengun's scoring has gone down to 18.4 points per game thus far.

However, the 22-year-old is still a force for the Rockets. Sengun is averaging 11.1 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.0 steals, and 1.3 blocks, doing more on the defensive end.

Sengun is tied for the most double-doubles in the NBA season with 12. He's among some of the league's best in Giannis Antetokounmpo, Karl-Anthony Towns, Domantas Sabonis, and Jarrett Allen. Out of these five players, Sengun is averaging a double-double with the fewest minutes.

Sengun hasn't lost his ability to dish the ball, either. He has two triple-doubles this season, ranking him fifth in the league in that category behind Nikola Jokic, LeBron James, Cade Cunnigham, and Sabonis. Sengun is the only player in the top seven averaging less than 30 minutes per game.

The scoring hasn't been prominent this season, but the do-it-all center is slowly becoming one of the best in the league. Houston currently sits at 11-5 with Sengun at the helm, meaning he could make his first All-Star Game if the Rockets are still in a solid playoff spot by midseason.

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