Speed Could Be The Rockets' Best Offensive Skill

The Houston Rockets may have one of their best offenses of the decade going into this season, even without the services of Fred VanVleet. While this still doesn't necessarily mean they'll have one of the league's best offenses, they have several elements that could contribute to a top-tier level if utilized to their maximum potential.

One underrated element is the amount of speed and fast players throughout the lineup.

The conversation over Houston's speed begins with Amen Thompson, who is one of the league's fastest, most athletic players. Thompson is nearly unstoppable in transition, making quality decisions with the ball and showing off his lead guard abilities on the break.

His guard skills are limited in the half-court, but he is able to find shooters like Kevin Durant and Jabari Smith Jr. on the perimeter, while also hitting slashers like Tari Eason and Alperen Sengun.

Eason is another player who contributes significantly to the team's speed level. The combination of Eason and Thompson is highly productive in transition. The duo beats defenses down the floor to the basket, putting significant pressure on opposing teams' transition defense.

Reed Sheppard is another player who provides quality speed when pushing the ball in transition. He can push the ball forward with the pass, and he also makes great decisions with the ball in his hands on the fast break.

Thompson, Eason, and Sheppard wouldn't be able to do much on their own without their teammates also keeping up in the fast break.

Sengun is relatively fast for a player in his position, slashing straight to the basket for easy dunks and baskets at the rim. Durant and Smith Jr. also keep up in transition, filling lanes on the break to get open shots, and even running the break themselves.

Utilizing the team's speed will be crucial for the Rockets to succeed on offense. Houston needs as many easy opportunities as possible throughout the season to help support the rest of the offense. The team can't survive depending on tough shots from Durant and Sengun, so they'll need other ways to create those opportunities.

While there are still elements that can create easy baskets in the half-court offense, transition speed is one of the best ways to create easy baskets. Using their speed in the break could be a huge help for their overall offensive game, and potentially tire out opposing defenses that try to keep up.