The Steady Improvement Of Houston Rockets Center Alperen Şengün

Alperen Şengün is currently the starting center on a team trying to maximize their chances of winning big in next year’s NBA draft. That is not without a certain level of irony given that the big prize – Frenchman Victor Wembanyama – would likely supplant Şengün as the team’s long-term solution at center.

Until that becomes reality, however, Şengün is intent on doing what he’s doing, which is continuing to improve.

The 20-year-old is netting 14.9 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in just 26.8 minutes per game. His modest assist numbers in particular are misleading, as Şengün is one of the most creative and impressive passers in the NBA, channeling his inner Nikola Jokić with passes through his legs or over the shoulders.

Şengün is able to combine his passing with an impressive low-post game, which centers on mesmerizing footwork for someone so young. He’s also developing a reliable in-between game consisting of floaters and push-shots, and it’s only a matter of time before he conquers the three-point line, as his shooting mechanics are clean, and will be able to extend his range.

Last season, Şengün tested out the long ball, with poor results. He took 1.6 attempts per night, connecting on just 24.8%, which has resulted in less attempts from range this year, as he perfects it behind the scenes. This season, he’s hit 20.8% of his 24 total attempts, and the shot doesn’t feature heavily in his arsenal. It will have to be, one day, but for now Şengün is polishing his interior game.

That polish hasn’t come without certain struggles, though. Despite taking 86.9% of his total shots within 10 feet of the basket, Şengün has seen his free throw rate drop from a 44.2 FTr last season to 37.1 this year.

In fairness to Şengün, he’s gotten a fairly rough whistle this year. His advanced footwork, spin moves, and ability to manufacture shots right near the rim, seems to throw off referees at times, as they don’t always catch defenders grabbing after his elbows, especially as he twists and turns his entire body. There’s simply too many moves going on at once by Şengün for the ref crews to catch everything, and they need to do a better job watching how defenders will often use their hands to stop him.

One area where Şengün still needs to put in more work is in protecting the ball. Since coming into the league, he’s turned the ball over far too much, and that pattern persists. He takes wild chances with the ball, which can be seen in a good light as having the courage to try new things usually makes players better in the long run, but there are certainly times where he plays out of control and losing sight of the play.

Şengün is a smart player, and he knows it. That occasionally comes back to bite him, when he tries to be a bit too cute with the passes, or makes a simple read needlessly complicated. Of course, some of that is explained by the simple fact that he’s 20. Being a little cocky and overconfident at that age is perfectly normal, and it’s on the Rockets to teach him how to settle down.

Defensively, Şengün remains a work in progress. He’s gotten better at holding his position and not jumping at every fake thrown at him like last season, but he still fouls too much. He isn’t the most athletic player out there, and will occasionally lose a step on his opponent, and try to make up for it by playing defense with his hands, which leads to whistles.

While he’ll undoubtedly get better on that end of the floor, it’s likely he never turns into a high-impact player defensively. He won’t turn into a highly switchable player who can stick with guards, but he should be fine if he dedicates himself to providing help from the nail and in, and making the paint his area.

In terms of the future, it’ll be interesting to see how he settles in alongside Jalen Green and Jabari Smith. Both players will take up a lot of shots and possessions, so the onus is on Şengün to become that connecting piece, who remains involved when they start to cook.

If wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if the Rockets also found themselves a more traditional point guard, who would make it a priority to get Şengün the ball, allowing him to move and cut at his own pace. While Green has shown more creation abilities this year, it’s too soon to predict him to become the type of player who could fit that role.

Whatever the plan is for Houston, it starts with the lottery, which could also determine Şengün’s long-term future in Texas.

Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.