Rockets' VanVleet Unlocked New Level After All-Star Break

Fred VanVleet has been playing exceptionally well after a return from injury.

Fred VanVleet signed a three-year, $129 million contract with the Houston Rockets this summer, leaving the Toronto Raptors. An All-Star in 2022, VanVleet is now receiving twice the amount of money per year that he was paid in Canada. 

Despite the sizable contract, VanVleet is seeing the second-lowest usage percentage of his career, bested only by the season that Kawhi Leonard took over Toronto en route to the 2019 NBA Finals.

Rockets' guard Fred VanVleet during the Rockets pre-season victory over the Pacers / Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

For Houston, he is posting his lowest points per game since the 2019 season, but he is posting career-highs in assists and has not seen his shooting percentage drop. He continues to be a reliable floor general despite the change of scenery. 

Entering the All-Star Break, the unofficial halftime of the NBA season, VanVleet had missed five straight games with an abductor injury. In his five games before the injury, he averaged 10.6 points per game, 6.8 assists, and was in a shooting slump. Houston lost three of those games, but only won a single game when he was injured. 

Since returning, VanVleet has taken his game to a new level, averaging a mediocre 16.7 points and a measly 4.7 assists over three games, but he has increased his shooting to 40.0 percent from deep and is playing better off-ball. 

In the three games since VanVleet's return, his usage percentage has remained in line with his season averages, but his assist percentage has taken a steady dip. This is actually a good thing. 

VanVleet's recent success goes hand-in-hand with Jalen Green's resurgence. The third-year guard has seen a slight uptick in three-point percentage and a slight decrease in turnovers since VanVleet has come back.

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In addition to that, Cam Whitmore has improved his shooting when VanVleet is around.

VanVleet understands that he is a complimentary piece to Houston's rebuild. His job is less about impacting winning and more about putting young pieces in a place to succeed. While his stats have improved slightly since his return, his impact on the players around him cannot be understated.