Jalen Green's Career Night Ends With Frustration In Rockets Loss To Hornets
HOUSTON — Jalen Green walked into the locker room shirtless, holding his white shooting sleeve in his hands. Before taking a seat in front of his locker, Green threw the sleeve on the ground in frustration.
"We don't like being on a losing streak, especially with this being our 12th game," Green said. "We are way better than that."
Green tied his career-high with 41 points (16-24 FG, 4-of-10 3PT) for the Houston Rockets Wednesday night inside the Toyota Center. But his heroics were not enough, as the Rockets fell 122-117 to the Charlotte Hornets.
The last time Green scored 41 points, it came during the final game of his rookie campaign in April against the Atlanta Hawks. Green left the arena with a smile believing his sophomore season would continue the progression he and his team made to close the year.
But 44 games into the 2022-23 season, the constant losing had taken its toll, as there was no joy expressed when Green reminisced about his night against the Hornets. In addition to his scoring, Green added seven assists and five rebounds in the loss.
"I just came into the game with confidence," Green said. "My guys were looking for me, and I was getting open looks."
Green credited his play against the Hornets as a carryover from his 23-point outing against the Los Angeles Lakers Monday night. He scored 23 points in the first half. But his performance during the final 24 minutes may have been more impressive.
The Hornets began to blitz Green during the third quarter to limit his play. Silas said Charlotte was aggressive each time he came off the pick-and-roll at the start of the third.
But instead of folding against the blitz — as he did against the Sacramento Kings on Jan. 13 — Green was more equipped to regain his momentum.
Green said coach Stephen Silas created a game plan once the Hornets began blitzing. After he was limited to five points in the third quarter, Green scored 13 during the fourth.
"He was being aggressive," Silas said. "We needed to get back into the game. He was pushing the ball up. He was making plays and making his threes. In the end, we started mixing and matching, getting touches between him and Alperen [Sengun]."
Green is not focusing on his individual achievement.
His top priority is helping the Rockets end their current 12-game losing streak. Houston has a home-and-home series against the Minnesota Timberwolves that begins on Saturday before a home game against the Washington Wizards on Jan. 25.
Both the Timberwolves and Wizards are under .500
"We gotta have short-term memory going into the next game," Green said. "Coming into the games with the same energy and effort, we must carry it throughout the whole game.
"We cannot take our foot off the gas during the third quarter. We have to carry that same mindset through the fourth quarter."
You can follow Coty M. Davis on Twitter at @CotyDavis_24
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