The Wembanyama sweepstakes are in full force, and teams are actively tanking in order to acquire this 7’5 freak of nature. People are calling him the most intriguing prospect since LeBron, so naturally many teams are going to do what they can to get him. We’re at the point of the NBA season where we have a pretty good idea of who is going to have the best odds at getting Victor. Obviously, things can change between now and the end of the season. I’m going to go through the five worst teams in the NBA over the next couple weeks to see how Wemby would fit around their current core of young talent. In this article, we’re going to see how he’d fit on the Houston Rockets.
Houston Rockets
The Rockets are the (proud?) owner of the worst record in the NBA at the moment. They currently sit at 13-46 and have no direction with their current roster. They’re bad. Real bad. They currently have the worst offense and the 3rd worst defense in the league. They commit the most turnovers and have the worst eFG% in the NBA.
The grass has definitely been greener in Houston. As bad as it looks, there is still intriguing young talent on this roster. Alperen Sengun has been one bright spot for the Rockets this season. He’s currently putting up 15.1pts, 8.8reb, and 3.7 ast. Sengun plays with a high basketball IQ and is able to see passes that many guards can’t. He’s the second best passing big in the NBA behind Jokic. While it’d be a safe bet to say he won’t be as good, Sengun is often compared to Jokic for his elite passing and solid back to the basket game.
When you think of this current Rockets team, you probably think of Jalen Green–and rightfully so. He puts up the most points on the team and has the ball in his hands the most. He’s also given us plenty of exciting highlight dunks and stepback threes. If you just saw these highlights, you’d think he’s one of the best scorers in the NBA. Unfortunately, though, the numbers tell a different story. He’s shooting a poor 40% from the field and only 33% from three–putting him well below league average for both categories. Furthermore, he’s only shooting 56% around the rim. While 56% doesn’t sound that bad on the surface, let’s remember that these attempts are within 4 ft. of the rim. 56% around the rim puts him in the 20th percentile for combo guards. The midrange isn’t Green’s favorite shot, but he’s been more than willing to take them. In the 289 middies he’s taken, he’s made only 112 (39%) of them. He’s been terribly efficient on the offensive end and hasn’t done anything to make up for it on defense. When he’s on the court, teams average 7.7 more points per 100 possessions. That puts him all the way down in the 5th percentile for the entire NBA and makes him one of the worst defenders in the league.
The final core piece of the Rockets is Jabari Smith. He was taken with the 3rd pick in the draft because of his elite shooting and defense in college. However, so far this shooting ability has yet to translate. Like Green, Smith is another player that has been terribly inefficient. He’s only shooting 30% from three and 37% from the midrange. He’s shown a serious inability to create his own shot and is on a team that needs just that. His eFG% also only sits at 46.1%--putting him in the 4th(!) percentile for all big men.
If Wembanyama does end up on the Rockets, it’s clear he’ll be joining a terribly inefficient team. Slotting him into this team, though, would open up a plethora of open looks for Jalen Green and Jabari Smith. I think it’s pretty obvious that Wembanyama will demand a double team from most of his opponents. As long as Victor’s passing can translate, we should see Green and Smith start knocking down more shots and getting at least closer to league average in efficiency. Playing Sengun and Wemby on the court together at the same time can also be a fun experiment. Wemby will be able to be the rim protector that Sengun could never be. It’d also be exciting to see Victor make cuts off Sengun. Sengun is one of the best in the league at finding the cutter and Victor is (obviously) a huge target and great finisher around the rim. Like he would on any team, he would be a good fit for the Rockets. Despite this, Scoot Henderson may be a better fit. He’d be able to run the offense and create shots to a whole nother level compared to Kevin Porter Jr. While Rockets fans should be rooting to draft Wembanyama with the #1 pick, drafting second might just be a blessing in disguise.
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