One Area Alperen Sengun Needs to Improve Next Season for the Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets started their rebuild the day they traded James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets in January 2021. Instead of trading for veteran players who could help them win right away, the Rockets opted for future draft picks, hoping they could bring in young talent that could develop into star-level players one day.

Following that draft, the Rockets would start a string of four straight seasons with a high lottery pick. For three of those four seasons, the Rockets had two first-round picks. The Rockets drafted Jalen Green out of the NBA G League Ignite team with their first post-Harden pick and traded with the Oklahoma City Thunder for their 17th overall pick.

With the No. 17 pick, the Rockets selected Alperen Sengun, who turned out to be one of the best picks of the entire draft. Sengun has not only been one of the best, if not the best, players on the Rockets since day one, but he was one of the best players in that entire draft.

After dealing with two years of losing unstable basketball during the Stephen Silas era, Sengun started to flourish under Ime Udoka. Sengun was on his way to a possible All-Star appearance in the 2023-24 season but fell just short after a combination of dealing with an injury and the Rockets' slump in January.

Sengun was on a mission in 2024-25 not only to make the All-Star team but also to help the Rockets get to the playoffs for the first time in five years. Sengun was able to accomplish both, making his first All-Star Game as a reserve and being one of the biggest reasons the Rockets finished second in the Western Conference, winning 52 games.

The Rockets came up short in the playoffs, but overall, it was a successful season for Sengun and the Rockets. Now, the Rockets have shifted their focus to next season and are trying to take the next step. To do that, they will need everyone, including Sengun, to improve their overall games next season. In the latest installment, we discuss one area Sengun needs to improve on, and you can guess what that area will be.

Improving His 3-point Shooting

Like many of the Houston Rockets, Sengun struggled from the 3-point line for most of the season. Going into last season, Sengun wanted to become more of a threat from beyond the arc as he told the media during training camp that he wanted to shoot without hesitation.

As the season progressed, unfortunately, that wasn't the case, as Sengun's 3-point attempts decreased from the previous seasons, along with his percentage from downtown. Sengun's 3-point percentage dropped from 29.7% last season to 23.3% this season.

Teams made it a point to drop as many defenders as possible in the lane because they realized Sengun was one of the best post players in the NBA. They wanted to force Sengun into taking outside shots, and at times, that caused the Rockets' offense to come to a screeching halt.

For the Rockets and Sengun to take that next step and compete with teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder, they will need to become a better outside shooting team. Sengun has had a great start to his career, and if he is able to add a 3-point shot, he will be almost impossible to stop on the offensive end of the court.