Houston Rockets: Alperen Sengun to Make All-Star Debut

The Houston Rockets have lifted off this season and are looking ready to make a few deep postseason pushes in the coming years.

Alperen Sengun has been the face of the team, and today, he makes his All-Star game debut. He is also the Rockets' first All-Star selection since James Harden and Russell Westbrook in 2019-2020.

Sengun will play for Charles Barkley's team: Chucks' Global Stars. He will be teamed up with Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama, Pascal Siakam, Karl-Anthony Towns, Donovan Mitchell and Trae Young.

Houston has been in the media a lot recently due to its recent success. Yesterday, the NBA posted a video on YouTube comparing Sengun to Jokic. Sengun has been nicknamed "Baby Jokic" due to the similarities in his game. Both players are international and have great passing IQ for their position. Comparing Sengun to an arguably top-15 player in NBA history says something about Houston's center: he is primed for greatness if he continues on an upward trend.

This season, Sengun is averaging 18.8 points, almost five assists, and almost 11 rebounds. The first time All-Star is averaging a double-double for the first time in his career, and has been leading the Rockets to their recent success.

Amen Thompson will be joining his teammate at the All-Star game, playing for Candace Parker's team: Candace's Rising Stars, after he was selected by her after the Rising Stars game to play today. He will be playing alongside Stephon Castle, Dalton Knecht, Jaylen Wells, Keyonte George, Zach Edey, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Ryan Dunn.

Thompson has also been in the media plenty recently, and some are even pushing him as the Rockets' player with the highest ceiling. His potential is through the roof, as he is one of the most athletic guards/forwards in the league, plays All-NBA level defense, and can get to the rim to score at will.

The future in Houston is looking bright, and this is just the start. Sengun highlighting the All-Star game and Thompson showing out in the Rising Stars game are only flashes of what is to come in the future.