The Houston Rockets will not head into the 2022-23 NBA season with very high expectations. After finishing dead last in the league last season, the Rockets have nowhere to go but up. They will soar higher this season than they did last year but not by much. Here we will discuss four bold predictions for the Houston Rockets in the 2022-23 NBA season.
With the Rockets' rebuilding process continuing this season, Houston will once again rely largely on its youthful core. That doesn't mean the Rockets are doomed for another 20-win season, though. Instead, that budding youthful core should start winning in 2022-23, helping Houston eclipse last year's paltry win total.
Despite struggling in their first full season without James Harden, the Rockets still had literal and moral victories. They recognized the potential in Jalen Green, Kevin Porter Jr. and Jae'Sean Tate, who are three significant young players. They like how coach Stephen Silas managed a primarily novice group with both encouragement and firmness. The Rockets also acquired additional draft selections and made other important summer moves to improve their future.
Regardless of these roster adjustments, however, Houston should be confident in becoming more competitive in the 2022-23 season. Furthermore, the Rockets should also have lots of roster and cap flexibility in the years to come. This is clearly a team built for the future, which means they won't make it very far in the present.
Here are our four bold predictions for the Houston Rockets in the 2022-23 NBA season.
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4. Alperen Sengun is Houston's center of the future
Turkish big man Alperen Sengun was taken by the rebuilding Rockets with the 16th pick in the 2021 draft. Sengun's rookie season, however, was hampered by the presence of erstwhile starter Christian Wood. Despite Sengun's limited playing time, however, he averaged 9.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.
Drilling down deeper, he even averaged 14.7 points, 9.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.0 blocks in games where he played at least 30 minutes. Sengun has a lot of promise, and the Rockets traded Wood to the Mavericks this summer as a vote of confidence in their new starting center.
Sengun's new status will likely see him play roughly 30 minutes every game, but he can produce enough across the board to be incredibly important. Will he have a breakout season? We think so, but maybe not his best just yet.
3. Jabari Smith impresses in his rookie season
Jabari Smith was the unexpected No. 3 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. Despite mixed reviews during Summer League, he will surely start at power forward this season alongside Sengun. The departure of Wood really clears the way for a Sengun-Smith frontcourt of the future. It's exciting, but this won't be a world-beating tandem just yet.
Remember that Smith is not a naturally ball-dominant player, so where he falls in the offensive pecking order will be widely watched early in the season. In the end, he's a rookie with a pretty high floor but a rather modest ceiling. We see him flirting with a double-double every night in his debut campaign.
2. The Jalen Green and Kevin Porter pairing packs some punch
Green finished the 2021-22 season on a high note, averaging 28.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists in his final nine games. While he is unlikely to produce those numbers for an entire season, his more modest line of 22.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game after the All-Star break should be achievable.
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Meanwhile, Porter showed some interesting promise during his 26-game sophomore season with the Rockets in 2020-21, including a 50-point, 11-assist performance against the Milwaukee Bucks.
He struggled early on while sharing the backcourt with Green last season, though. Porter averaged 13.0 points on awful 36/32/63 shooting splits in the first three months of the season, but he improved following after the new year. He averaged 16.9 points, 6.3 assists and 4.4 rebounds during his final 40 outings, on much-improved efficiency.
The Rockets return the majority of their roster from last season, but it is a young one. This Green-Porter combo looks might be interesting, though. It's surely one to watch.
1. Rockets don't finish dead last in the West
The Houston Rockets look to be improving this season, but by how much? Again, they should not perform any worse than they did last season.
Keep in mind that the Rockets' youthful core will make promising strides. Green and Porter are a talented, explosive backcourt tandem, and Smith should eventually develop into a two-way impact player. Overall, the Rockets should improve on their 20-win season from last year, but it is difficult to picture this squad flirting with 30 wins or more.
Remember that the Rockets play in a Western Conference that is predicted to feature more playoff contenders than rebuilding clubs. Having said that, Houston should not endure repeated double-digit losing streaks like it did last season. However, unless a few teams suffer big losses, the Rockets will likely struggle to make it past the regular season in such a crowded field.
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