Rockets post NBA All-Star break stats may surprise you

After the Houston Rockets explosion in the second half of their win Friday night over the Portland Trailblazers, the Rockets are 4-5 since the NBA All-Star break. That 4-5 record is a microcosm of the Rockets season, during which they have been at or below .500 for a large part of the year.

Despite the below-average record since the All-Star break, we have seen some good to great performances. The Rockets have had some standout performances from Alperen Sengun’s recent back-to-back career nights and Jalen Green’s 34-point explosion. Let us look at some interesting stats since the Rockets have come off the All-Star break.

Alperen Sengun 21.7

Jalen Green 20.4

Fred VanVleet 17.1

This category is unsurprising, as Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green have led the Rockets in scoring all season. Since the break, Sengun has averaged 21.7 points a game, including his dominating performance vs. Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs, where he scored a career-high 45 points, while Green has averaged 20.4. Fred VanVleet started slowly following his stint on the bench rehabbing an injury, but his overall play has improved recently.

One player who stood out in the category is Cam Whitmore. He has 12.9 points and is fifth on the team, even though he only plays 20.3 minutes a game. As this screenshot points out, Whitmore is doing things on the court we have not seen since the early 1980s.

Alperen Sengun 11.2

Jabari Smith 9.4

Amen Thompson 6.1

Since the All-Star break, two players have stood out since the break when it comes to rebounding. No surprise again, Sengun is leading the way, averaging 11.2 rebounds, including 19 rebounds, vs the Spurs. Smith has been the Rockets’ second-best rebounder all season, which has continued since the break. His rebounds have gone up a full rebound per game in the last nine games.

Again, a rookie stands out for the Rockets; this time, it is Amen Thompson. Thompson is the Rockets’ third-best rebounder despite only playing 21.4 minutes. Thompson is the most versatile player on the team, with his ability to rebound, play elite defense at times and play above the rim. He can one day average a triple-double for an entire season. He is that good.

Jeff Green 41.7

Fred VanVleet 41.5

Aaron Holiday 38.5

The Rockets have struggled with three-point shooting for the past four seasons. To start the season, however, the Rockets were in the middle of the pack as a team. This is no surprise, considering the Rockets started as a top-three defense. They were the surprise of the league. The average shooting from the arc didn’t last. Once the clock struck midnight and we moved into 2024, the Rockets’ shooting started to plummet.

After the All-Star break, the shooting has gotten slightly better. Jeff Green has been the Rockets’ best shooter at 41.7 percent, but that is in limited minutes at only 12.7 a game. VanVleet is second, shooting a much improved 41.5 percent, as he has gotten back to his early shooting form. Third is another player who plays limited minutes, Aaron Holiday, who is playing less than 10 minutes a game.

We will see if the Rockets can continue improving from beyond the arc, as it is the key to the Rockets finally putting together a long winning streak.

Offensive rating Alperen Sengun 112.8

Defensive rating Amen Thompson 100.7

Regarding advanced stats, we have the usual candidates who lead offensive ratings. Sengun and Green are the top two players since the break in offensive rating. Defense and net rating is where it starts to get interesting. Thompson leads in defensive rating, and it’s not even close. His defensive rating is 100.7. The player in the second may surprise a lot of players. Whitmore is currently second in defensive rating at 104.5. No one is surprised that Thompson is elite on defense already, but Whitmore’s improvement in defense is an excellent sign for the Rockets.

As mentioned earlier, the Rockets have been an average team record-wise post-All-Star break. There have been, however, some standouts like Amen Thompson, Alperen Sengun and Cam Whitmore. The Rockets are on the outside looking in when it comes to the play in-game and need a minor miracle to pass three teams. Even if they don’t make it, continued improvement for everyone on the team (as some of the numbers have suggested) would lessen the sting of missing the playoffs for the fourth straight season.