How the Rockets’ offense has declined without Alperen Sengun

Life without Alperen Sengun proved difficult for Houston Rockets.

After entering the month with the third-best offensive rating in the NBA, Houston has dropped to 23^rd in the last three gamesall of which Sengun missed.

And the regression should continue, like Sengun is not expected to return for at least another week with a sprained right ankle.

The step back was expected, as Sengun is second on the team with nearly 22 points per game. But what is surprising is where the regression showed up.

The Flaming rockets, 103-102in Portland on Wednesday night and a Kevin Durant far from going 0-3 without Sengun while scoring fewer than 105 points in each game.

But the more obvious decline came from beyond the arc.

Missiles can’t find range

It’s no coincidence that the Rockets’ three worst shooting performances this season have come in the last three games without Sengun.

Houston shot an abysmal 8-of-36 (22%) from deep Wednesday, after going 9-of-37 (24%) on Monday and 10-of-41 (22%) on Saturday — a game in which Sengun suffered an injury in one minute.

That is a total of 23%. the worst mark in the NBA this monthfor a team that led the league in 3-point percentage. It’s also well below the league’s worst shooting team, the Dallas Mavericks (33%).

The irony is that Sengun isn’t a prolific 3-point shooter, hitting just 31% of his attempts while averaging just two attempts per game. But it’s hard to replace an offensive weapon like him, especially when the Rockets started running their offense through him this year. In his absence, Houston turned to more shots from beyond the arc.

Part of the reason Houston was able to lead the league in 3-point shooting as long as they did is because they won the least in the league. They chose quality over quantity, maximizing efficiency. But since Sengun’s injury, Houston has launched more than 35 3-pointers in each game after averaging fewer than 30 attempts per contest.

More trouble than just shooting

Another missing element is his gameplay. Despite being a center, Sengun leads the team with nearly seven assists per game. The real point guard, who follows, is already missing Fred VanVleet’s injuryand now Sengun, Houston has struggled to set up clean offensive looks without a true playmaker.

With Sengun on the floor, he is able to create more open looks for his guards with an inside-out style of attack, thanks to the attention he commands. Without him, Houston not only relies on more 3-point attempts, but also poorer looks due to the lateral movement of the ball. Now it’s quantity without quality.

A change that helps explain recent losses to a 14-23 Dallas team and an 18-20 Portland team this week.

Durant excelled as he tried to fill the void, scoring more than 25 points in each of the three games. However, his efficiency has declined, as Durant is shooting just 25% from beyond the arc this month.

And while he can find his footage in the dark, others are sure to miss the settings from Sengun: Reed Sheppard and Jabari Smith Jr. both are shooting under 27% from beyond the arc this month.

While there are plenty of concerns about how well the Denver Nuggets can tread water without Nikola Jokic, the Rockets suddenly face a similar question (on a smaller scale) without their star who many affectionately call “Baby Jokic.”

Houston enters Thursday’s action as just the sixth seed in the Western Conference.