On December 15, yesterday, the Rockets defeated the Grizzlies at home, not only winning four in a row recently, but also winning 11 in a row at home. It has to be said that under Udoka's construction, Houston's home stadium has become one of the most difficult to conquer in the league. In the last two games, the Rockets' No. 17 pick Eason played brilliantly, breaking out in two consecutive games to help the team win. He scored 18 points and 14 boards against the Spurs, and set a career high of 25 points and 14 boards against the Grizzlies.
Today, a set of stats about Ethan's season came to light, and when Eason is on the floor, the Rockets' net efficiency (offensive efficiency-defensive efficiency, i.e., points per 100 possessions) is as high as 17.2. In addition, among all players who have averaged at least 15 minutes per game this season, Eason ranks first in the league in defensive efficiency with 94.5 points. Most of the time I just focus on the performance of the players on the court, I just know that Ethan plays very hard, especially in defense and fighting for rebounds, and he is very motivated, and now the stats tell us that he is really good.
It is worth mentioning that Ethan's performance is getting better and better, which also has a lot to do with Udoka's good use. After Ethan's return from injury, he has played around 20 minutes, but in the last two games, he has played as many as 27 minutes. More importantly, in the last two games, in the last two games, Udoka abandoned the starting point guard Jalen Green, and instead let Ethan partner others to play key stages, which can be seen from this that Udoka really likes Ethan and really trusts him.
If you know Udoka, you can see why Ethan has recently risen to prominence and gained reuse. Because Udoka's coach is very focused on defense, no matter how many points you lead and how well you attack, if the defense is lax and unfocused, you can't get playing time. Ethan is known as a hexagonal warrior, with a high defensive enthusiasm and an offensive ability to counter-attack and off-ball, which is Udoka's favorite type, so it's not hard to see why Ethan will be reused. On the other hand, Green, who has recently been deprecated in the last quarter, is in stark contrast. With the coach's approval on defense, there is no doubt that Ethan has already won the initial battle in the heart of the competition.