With the Pelicans and Eagles winning the playoff qualifiers, all 16 teams in the Two Leagues of the West and East have officially emerged. Starting from the early morning of April 17, Beijing time, this season's playoffs will officially begin. The Houston Rockets, which ended their last regular season game five days ago, are preparing for their offseason.
Christopher and Shin Kyung said goodbye to their rookie season by posting photos on their social media, while rockets' bench forward Kenjan Martin Jr. has officially entered vacation mode. We saw Martin Jr.'s vacation photos on social media, and interestingly, in this photo, Martin Jr. wasn't alone, but with former Rockets shooter Ben McLemo, and the two of them appeared in the pool looking relaxed.
McLemore joined the Rockets in 2019 as a free agent, playing only one season around Harden and Westbrook, and with the Rockets out of the second round of the playoffs that year, Westbrook also left Space City Houston. Then last season, the Rockets' Harden left the team halfway to go to the Nets, and McLemore was still a member of the Rockets at the time, and after Harden left, McLemore had no meaning to stay with the Rockets.
The Rockets, who officially entered the rebuilding phase, also cut McLemoh, after which McLemore went to the Lakers and joined the Blazers this season. It is worth noting that Martin Jr. was a rookie player for the Rockets last season, and when he came to the Rockets, McLemore had not been cut, and the two of them had been teammates for a while before McLemore left.
The short-term teammate relationship also allowed the two to form a deep friendship, otherwise Martin Jr. would not be able to go on vacation with McLemore. The Trail Blazers' injuries and lineup changes this season led to the same ending as the Rockets — missing the playoffs and giving McLemore a chance to go on vacation after the regular season.
But it has to be said that the Rockets' little Martin should now have a "sense of crisis". Martin Jr. played in 79 games for the Rockets this season, and in an average of 21 minutes per game, Martin Jr. contributed 8.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.5 blocks, but this summer, the Rockets held two first-round picks, especially the Rockets' top 5 draft picks, according to many professional predictions, the Rockets are likely to pick up one of the three big forwards, Homegren, Jabari Smith or Bancello.
Martin Jr.'s position is also a big forward, and if the Rockets usher in a new No. 4 rookie next season, then Martin Jr.'s position on the Rockets is really not guaranteed. After all, in addition to this high-ranking rookie, the Rockets also have the main big forward Jeshaun Tate, and martin Jr. at that time, the playing time will definitely be affected, and even whether he can enter the rotation lineup is difficult to say. Therefore, taking advantage of the offseason to train well to improve himself is also the best way for Martin Jr. to cope with the challenges of next season.