The Houston Rockets destroyed the Utah Jazz on Saturday night to continue their recent torrid stretch, as the 147-119 victory was their eighth straight win, and tenth in the past 11 games. As has been the case as of late, Jalen Green was leading the way for Houston, and his latest big game drew him quite a comparison from his head coach Ime Udoka.
Green torched Utah all night in this one (41 PTS, 4 REB, 4 AST, 15/22 FGM), making it the second time in the past three games he has surpassed the 40-point mark. It hasn't always been easy for Green, who has dealt with his fair share of criticism early in his career, but Udoka said he has many of the traits of other high-level scorers he's worked with in his previous coaching stints, which bodes well for Green as he attempts to prove this hot streak isn't a fluke.
Ime Udoka says he's proud of how Jalen Green stayed resilient and fought through adversity, dealing with different demands from a new coaching staff.
"I've coached a lot of high-level scorers," said Udoka on the streak he's on right now. "This is right up there with them." pic.twitter.com/7ZdNw0dFpN
— ClutchFans (@clutchfans) March 24, 2024
Jalen Green stepping up for the Rockets in a big way
When it was announced that Alperen Sengun was likely out for the rest of the season with an ankle injury, it seemed like the Rockets season was over. But the opposite has happened, as they have gone on a tear without Sengun to move just 1.5 games behind the Golden State Warriors for the ten seed in the Western Conference. As Udoka points out, Green has been the main force leading Houston to wins.
Green's numbers on the season (19.5 PPG, 5 RPG, 3.4 APG, 42.6 FG%) and his numbers over the past 11 games (27.8 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 3.5 APG, 51.4 FG%) show just how big of a leap forward he has taken for the Rockets during Sengun's absence. His team is rallying behind him, as evidenced by Dillon Brooks hilariously crashing his postgame interview after their demolition of the Jazz.
Dillon Brooks crashes Jalen Green's interview after his 41-point performance 😂 pic.twitter.com/R6azZHGpke
— NBA (@NBA) March 24, 2024
This is the sort of player the Rockets envisioned leading their team when they drafted Green with the second overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft. He's struggled with inconsistencies and poor shot selection to this point of his career, but he finally appears to be putting all the pieces of the puzzle together at the perfect time for Houston, and they are firmly back in the hunt for a Play-In Tournament spot in the West.
Udoka has worked with some of the top scorers in the league during his coaching career, such as Kevin Durant and Jayson Tatum, so he knows what it takes for those guys to get on a roll on a nightly basis. The fact that he's seeing the same things in Green over this recent stretch is a great sign that he can continue to play at this high level moving forward.
There will be a day where Sengun returns to the lineup and he and Green will have to figure out a proper way to play alongside each other, but for now, Udoka and the Rockets are perfectly content to sit back and watch Green blossom into a star. The Play-In Tournament is well within their reach, and if Green keeps this up, nobody is going to want to run into the Rockets down the stretch of the season.
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