Inside The Rockets

Rockets Must Figure Out Shooting Woes

The Houston Rockets haven't shot the ball well this season.

Jeremy Brener

Jan 3, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets forward Cam Whitmore (7) takes a three-point shot against the Brooklyn Nets during the third quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images
Jan 3, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets forward Cam Whitmore (7) takes a three-point shot against the Brooklyn Nets during the third quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images / Erik Williams-Imagn Images
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The Houston Rockets are still one of the league's worst shooting teams despite all of their improvements.

The Rockets are going to have to shoot better if they wish to be more of a contender, and that's something that could take time to figure out.

"Converting three-pointers continues to be a trying task for the Rockets," Bleacher Report contributor Dan Favale writes. "They are downing under 35 percent of their above-the-break triples (19th) and just 25 percent of their corner treys (29th). Jalen Green has been their most consistent outside threat—by far–and even he's slogging through a downturn over the past few games. The Rockets effective field-goal percentage on wide-open jumpers (10 feet and out) is dead-last. Green, Thompson, Whitmore, Dillon Brooks, Alperen Şengün, Jabari Smith Jr. and Fred VanVleet are all shooting under 34 percent on uncontested threes. This is so staggeringly bad that it's almost encouraging. Surely Houston's perimeter woes aren't going to last. Right?"

The Rockets hope that their shooting troubles will eventually progress to the mean, but if they don't in the next two months or so, they may have to play No. 3 overall pick Reed Sheppard more or acquire a player or two who is more capable of shooting the deep ball.

The Rockets are back on the court tomorrow at 7 p.m. CT against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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