The Rockets are currently down 0-2 to the Lakers in their first-round playoff series. Initially listed as favorites, they are now in a position that no team has come back from against LeBron James in the past (24-0 playoff record in series where his team has a 2-0 lead).
However, Alperen Sengun remains confident that the Rockets can bounce back to potentially force a Game 7 against the Lakers, just like they did last year against the Warriors.
The two-time All-Star spoke to the media before the game and said that the Rockets should not be counted out of the series simply because they lost the first two games.
“No, it’s a long series. We are confident, we’re gonna go game by game, because we want to still win the series. We were down 3-1 last season, and we came back to Game 7. We didn’t do a good job in Game 7, but we still came back,” said Sengun.
“We never give up, that’s who we are. We have two home games now, we’re going to protect home and go back to L.A. for the fifth game,” the Turkish All-Star concluded confidently.
Sengun is currently averaging 19.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 5.5 assists while shooting 38.5% from the field in the first two games of this series. Shooting below 40% from the floor when you only play inside the three-point line is not the recipe for playoff success.
Moreover, two of the biggest red flags for the Rockets were the team’s inability to capitalize on double teams on Kevin Durant and the lack of shot-making, even on easy looks.
Sengun was asked about that and remained optimistic about the changes that the coaching staff has made going into Games 3 and 4 in Houston.
“We still do, we got like 40 more shots than them. We still shot it, and we still went for the boards. I still think we were going the right way. We beat them in every stat except making shots,” said Sengun on whether he’s able to get the shots that he wants against the Lakers’ defense.
Even if they force a Game 7, the biggest difference between last season’s inexperienced roster and this one for the Rockets is Kevin Durant. They do not have guards like Jalen Green and Fred VanVleet, or a two-way anchor like Dillon Brooks, but they do have a prolific scorer in Durant.
The 37-year-old All-Star had a postseason career-high in turnovers (nine) in Game 2 of the series. As elite a scorer as he is, leaving the playmaking on him as well has ended up being costly for the Rockets. But that’s not his fault alone.
Ime Udoka’s player rotations have become another subject of criticism as he did not play Reed Sheppard, the best three-point shooter on the team after Kevin Durant (39.5 3P% for the regular season), for more than 11 minutes last night, which were not enough minutes to find any sort of rhythm or impact in the game.
Players might defend that decision from Udoka, but even he himself has probably realized his mistake, as the Rockets’ head coach confirmed Sheppard will play significantly more minutes than he did in Game 2.
Here’s a simple three-step solution for the Rockets to have any chance in Game 3.
1. Get the ball out of Kevin Durant’s hand and let Reed Sheppard or Amen Thompson bring the ball up the court while Durant spaces the floor and looks for his favorable spots for catch-and-shoot looks.
2. Increased minutes for Reed Sheppard and Tari Eason over players like Jae’Sean Tate and Aaron Holiday for improved three-point shooting.
3. Be decisive and aggressive near the rim with your shots and rebounds. Either finish strong or look to kick out the ball to an open shooter.
While the Lakers have won the games that they were supposed to, it’s time now for the Rockets to defend their home court and force at least a Game 6 or 7 in this series. Fans would certainly call for major changes on the team if they lose at home or get swept.
Therefore, the Rockets have every incentive to bounce back harder in Game 3. Ime Udoka and Alperen Sengun’s future with the team could depend on the result of this series. But as Sengun said, the Rockets need to take it one game at a time from here on out.
