The Houston Rockets are one of the best stories of the NBA season. When the franchise hired head coach Ime Udoka ahead of last season, Houston was coming off three horrendous campaigns where they won 17 games, 20 games, and 22 games respectively. Udokda was hired to accelerate their post-James Harden rebuild, and he’s done that despite not having a true superstar.
Alperen Şengün threw NBA’s best assist, and Nikola Jokic’s fingerprints are all over it
Alperen Şengün’s wild assist is full of Nikola Jokic’s influence.
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
The closest thing the Rockets have to a star player in Alperen Şengün, who was named an All-Star for the first time in his career this year. The Rockets selected the Turkish big man with the No. 16 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft after he won MVP in his country’s domestic league at just 18 years old. Şengün always had some special talent with the ball in his hands, and Udoka has molded him into a serviceable defensive center who can stay on the floor in big moments.
Şengün has obviously watched a lot of Nikola Jokic growing up. You can see Jokic’s fingerprints all over Şengün’s game, and it especially shows up in his confidence passing the ball. As the Rockets faced the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night, Şengün threw one of the best passes of the season, looking like something straight out of the Jokic playbook with a little extra flair for the dramatic.
Watch Şengün’s pass here:
Jokic’s passing is more functional than flashy, but Şengün is adding a little extra sauce to his dimes. This is a wild delivery that led to two points in a win for the Rockets. Having cutters as athletic as Tari Eason sure helps a big man who likes to pass.
Houston beat the Suns, 111-104, to keep pace in the Western Conference standings.
Houston was holding down the No. 2 seed in the West for much of this season, and they still have a decent shot at it with under 20 games left to play. The Rockets improved to 41-25 overall after beating the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night, which ties their win total from last year. No one would have expected Udoka to lead the Rockets to 50+ wins just two years after getting hired, yet they’re poised to accomplish that and more this season.
Şengün has talked about how Jokic is his idol. You can see the impression he’s left in his game even if he’s never going to be anywhere in his vicinity as a player. It’s so cool to see how the greats influence the next generation, and Jokic has done that with Şengün.
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