Judging from some situations this season, there will always be one or two super guards in the first-class strong teams, such as Paul and Booker of the Suns, Harden of the 76ers, butler of the Heat, it can be said that excellent guards are the basic guarantee of a strong team based on the league. The rockets' tradition in recent years has also been to create a backcourt double core, from harden + Paul in the year, transition to Harden + Westbrook, and even last season the Rockets had a combination of backcourt stars such as Wall + Gordon.
This season, the Rockets' backcourt double core has become Porter Jr. + Jaylen Green, but are these two rookie guards really suitable for a long-term cooperation together? Obviously this is an unknown.
A season of cooperation, let us feel that the Rockets' backcourt double core does not have too much chemistry, although the data of the two is not bad, especially in the last few regular season games, the data brushed up, but I have to say that the two do not have much interaction and coordination in the tactics, often do their own thing.
Porter Jr.'s contract looks like it's 1 year away, and many fans believe that the Rockets should trade Kevin Porter Jr. as soon as possible, because Porter Jr. and Wood often control the Rockets' ball this season, making Green almost unable to touch the ball on the court, let alone have too many offensive opportunities, so in addition to cleaning up Wood, Porter Jr. should also be sent away. But is that really the case?
What we've seen is that in the 30+ games where Jaylen Green played well, the Rockets didn't win many games. Like Wood, Jaylen Green is, in a way, the type of player who wins personal data and loses games. Of course Green is just a rookie and can't ask too much of him, but when will Jaylen Green go from a data brush to a real rocket winning player, that's a question.
Jaylen Green has continued to improve on the offensive end this season, which is beyond doubt, as can be seen in Jaylen Green's increasingly beautiful stats. But what about Green's defensive ability? In fact, compared to the scoring ability, Green's defense is what he should improve the most.
According to ESPN statistics, when Porter Jr. and Jaylen Green are paired, if Jaylen Green is not there and Porter Jr. is on the court, the Rockets' defensive efficiency can reach 105.4, which is even higher than the Eastern Conference Celtics, who have entered the playoffs.
Porter Jr. himself is on the court, and the Rockets' defensive level is not bad at all, even comparable to the top 4 teams in the East. However, when Jaylen Green came out to join forces with Porter Jr., the Rockets' defensive efficiency, needless to say, was simply the worst level in the league — the Rockets were one of the teams that had conceded the most points per game this season, and from this alone, you can see how bad the Rockets' defense is.
While we don't want to admit it, that's the way it is. Green dragged the Rockets' defensive efficiency back in the game, and if the so-called backcourt double core only left Porter Jr., the Houston Rockets' defensive efficiency was even higher than that of the Greens Celtics. The hot-tempered Little Potter is indeed not as popular as the easy-going and cheerful Jaylen Green, but without Green, the Rockets may win more games with defensive intensity.
Therefore, Porter Jr. is not a burden to the Rockets, but Green really should improve his defensive skills in time this summer in addition to practicing strength and muscle.