Fred VanVleet's Last Season With the Rockets Was Severely Underrated

Fred VanVleet was one of the top reasons the Rockets went from doormat to .500.

Mar 29, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet (5) laughs after helping his team win against the Utah Jazz at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports / Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

As we have moved past NBA free agency and Summer League Houston Rocket news, we will be few and far between until training camp. That makes now the perfect time to break down some of the performances from this past season. We will start with former All-Star and NBA champion Fred VanVleet:

VanVleet had one of the Best Seasons of his Career

Apr 11, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet (5) drives against Utah Jazz guard Talen Horton-Tucker (5) during the third quarter at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

Coming off another disappointing season where the Rockets finished 22-60, Rafael Stone and the Rockets front office made it clear to anyone who would listen that collecting lottery picks and winning 20 games a season would not be accepted. Stone made his point loud and clear with the firing of Stephen Silas following the last game of the season. In his place, the Rockets brought in one of the most sought-after coaches, former Boston Celtic head coach Ime Udoka.

Next, Stone told the media before free agency that the goal is to bring in more veteran leadership. The Rockets were well under the cap and had to spend at least 50-plus million dollars to reach the minimum salary cap requirement. Enter Dillon Brook and Fred VanVleet. When you are the worst team in the league three years running, you will have to overpay to bring in any established player. When the deals were announced for both players, the media and fans didn't have an issue letting the Rockets know they felt it was an extreme overpay, especially for VanVleet.

VanVleet signed a three-year, 128 million-dollar max contract with the Rockets. With 83 million of that guaranteed and a team option for the third season. When you see those numbers, you will see a superstar-type player coming to your team. No, VanVleet is not a superstar, but he is exactly what the team needed to transition from a rebuilding team to a team trying to win every game. In the previous three seasons, the Rockets lacked discipline, direction, and a calming presence at the point guard position.

From day one, Coach Udoka said how much he values vets on his team. He also understood that he would have to spend extra time with the young players they had drafted the previous three seasons. He also understood that no matter how great a coach you are, you need players on your team that other players will listen to on the court, and that is where VanVleet comes into play. VanVleet brings discipline,direction, and a calming presence on the court.

VanVleet is not the type of guard that will light up the scoreboard but he does instantly improve your team the moment he steps in the door. Check out the below table on two of the most important improvments the Rockets had last season and you can directly tie them to the arrival of Fred VanVleet.

Turnovers	3-point %	Wins
2022-23 16.2 30th	2022-23 32.7% 30th	2022-23 22 Wins
2023-24 12.7 9th	2023-24 35% 23rd	2022-23 41 Wins

3-point shooting and turnovers have plagued the Rockets for years, and VanVleet was able to help the Rockets improve both critical categories, especially turnovers. The Rockets went from worse to top 10 in one season, which is a huge accomplishment.

VanVleet had a career year in assists at 8.1 dimes a game and shot 38.7 from beyond the arch, his best shooting year since the 2019-20 season. The Rockets went from one of the most undisciplined teams in the league to a team that rarely made mistakes under the leadership of Coach Udoka and VanVleet. Coach Udoka spoke many times about having a player like VanVleet on the court, is like having a head coach on the court. Coach Udoka would pull underperforming players throughout the season and have them sit most of the fourth quarter. VanVleet was the one player that never happened because Coach Udoka always felt that VanVleet would make a positive impact one way or another.

The Rockets were able to get into their sets a lot faster than previous years where it seems they would start to run their play with 8 seconds left on the clock because of over-dribbling. VanVleet got everyone in position, and something that stood out to me at training camp and every practice I went to was hearing VanVleet's voice constantly during drills and scrimmages. Even the locker room had a different feel as in past seasons, sometimes it was hard to tell when the team won or lost, and now, with winning being the number one priority when they are coming in from a loss, it is all business after the game.

VanVleet may not appear on many highlight feeds or top-10 plays, but he was and still is the point guard the Rockets need next season to finally get back into the playoffs.

---

Want to join the discussion? Like Rockets on SI Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Rockets news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.