Why Alperen Sengun’s All-Star snub will benefit the Rockets

Alperen Sengun made a loud statement on Mondaywith 39 points in a Houston Rockets win over the Indiana Pacers in his first game since being left off the All-Star roster.

There is a fair debate as to whether Sengun played at an All-Star level this season. The numbers are good, but some are down from last year’s All-Star campaign, which was also confirmed by the eye test. He hasn’t looked like the same player for part of this season.

A big reason is the ankle injury he’s been dealing with for the past month, which makes his snoring a blessing in disguise.

Sengun is better off if you take All-Star weekend off to rest, both physically and mentally. He missed a week in early January with the injury, before returning after Houston lost three of four games without him.

Then it took another two weeks before Sengun said he finally felt 100 percent again, highlighted by his 15-for-17 shooting performance against Memphis.

But that momentum didn’t last long. Two nights later, Sengun tightened the ankle againleading to anemic shooting performances: 7-for-20 against San Antonio, 3-for-14 against Atlanta, and 6-for-20 against Dallas. Despite all but two of those attempts coming from inside the arc, most of them in the paint.

There seemed to be no drive and aggression.

of course Monday’s 39-point outburst against Indiana he looked like the Sengun of old, but for now that’s the exception. He had more games with fewer than 15 points than he did with more than 28 points.

But the Rockets will need him to consistently play like that 30-point scorer Kevin Durantwhich provided those types of games more consistently. If Houston wants to accomplish anything this season, it will need both of its leading players — especially Sengun, who at 23 should be driving the bus.

The urgency is also heightened by Houston’s overloaded back-to-back schedule, making it even more imperative that Sengun be healthy, rested and ready to run.

He’s already playing a career-high number of minutes per game, and the numbers show how important rest is to him: 112 offensive rating without rest, 114 rating with one day of rest, 121 rating with two days of rest, and 126 rating with at least three days between games. Moreover, his usage rate has increased almost every month as the Rockets try to rely on him more. Especially with Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams missing time with injuries.

Sengun could use a break after a turbulent first half.

And maybe the thunder helps. Toronto Raptors coach Darko Rajaković Brandon Ingram recently said to use his All-Star miss as fuel for the rest of the season. Sengun has a chance to do the same. Rested, healthy, motivated and ready to remind the league exactly who he is.