The Houston Rockets roster has been crying out loud for a veteran leader who could help build a winning culture in H-Town amid the franchise's efforts to rebuild. And this offseason, they signed two players with considerable experience in winning situations, adding Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks to their young core led by Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, and Jabari Smith Jr.

At this point, it's not quite clear yet if the Rockets have enough firepower to at least threaten for a spot in the 2024 play-in tournament. But Brooks, the team's newest addition from the Memphis Grizzlies, certainly has high hopes for the Rockets' youngsters. In fact, it certainly seems like a few of the Rockets' pieces remind him of a familiar place in time.

Speaking with reporters during 2023 NBA Summer League, Dillon Brooks made a bold declaration regarding Jalen Green's and Jabari Smith Jr.'s futures, comparing them to Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr.

“I feel like it's exactly the same team from three, four years ago. We kinda have the same kind of players. Jalen Green's like Ja Morant. Jabari is like Jaren. These young guys that can expand their games and be one of the best or [be] the best in the league,” Brooks said, per Jackson Gatlin of Locked On Rockets.

By around 2019, the Grizzlies were already posting around 30 wins per year. The franchise was clearly in ascent after drafting well. During the 2019-20 season, Ja Morant's first year and Jaren Jackson Jr.'s second year in the league, the Grizzlies posted a 34-39 record. That was already good enough for a play-in tournament berth, and they almost made the playoffs, falling just short against the Portland Trail Blazers in the bubble as Jackson went down earlier in the campaign with a torn meniscus. Meanwhile, the Rockets won just 22 games last year.

It's not quite fair to compare Jalen Green to Morant, given their differences in playstyle. Morant, in his rookie year, was already a dynamic playmaker and one of the best in putting pressure on the rim. Moreover, Jaren Jackson Jr. was already one of the best shot-blockers in the league when he arrived, while Jabari Smith Jr. is not. Comparing the Rockets to the Grizzlies of yore may not be the best idea.

But Dillon Brooks' opinion is certainly something to take into consideration, given his proximity to the situation at hand.