Jalen Green Continues His Impressive Play in Rockets' Victory vs. Wizards
HOUSTON -- Jalen Green has played three seasons in the NBA and is far from putting the finishing touches on his all-time career highlight reel. But while leading the Houston Rockets to a 135-119 victory over the Washington Wizards Thursday night, Green made a play that will make the final cut whenever he calls it a career.
With 50.0 seconds left in the third quarter, Green completed a behind-the-back crossover that left Jared Butler on the floor. He finished the play by nailing a look-away triple, which accounted for one of his five made 3-point field goals.
"Once I saw him on the floor, I knew I was shooting it," Green said. "It was a good little highlight to add to the list."
Rockets guard Jalen Green (4) shoots the ball as Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) defends during the second quarter at Toyota Center.
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Green's play to close the third quarter was a testament to his outstanding performance against the Wizards. He finished the game with a season-high 37 points on an efficient 15 of 23 shooting and eight rebounds. But Green's production against Washington was a small sample size of his exceptional play amid Houston's ongoing push toward the Play-In Tournament.
The Rockets have won six of their previous eight games and are inching closer to the Golden State Warriors for the 10th and final Play-In spot. Houston has played some of its best ball as a team during the stretch. But outside of a 45-point eruption by Alperen Şengün on March 5, Green has arguably taken the mantle as Houston's best player.
"I think we've been playing really good," Green said. "Defense has been our main priority because we're very talented offensively when we get out in transition and run. It's very hard to guard us, so it all starts with defense. I think we've been really good."
While leading the Rockets to one of their most successful stretches of the season, Green has averaged 25.6 points on 47.2 percent shooting from the field. His best scoring performance came during the Rockets' two-game split against the Phoenix Suns. He scored 34 points in back-to-back games inside the Footprint Center.
But as significant as Green's play has been, his ability to impact the game beyond his scoring has been most impressive. He has stayed true to coach Ime Udoka's challenge of developing into an all-around player.
Green said his mindset has not been on scoring. He knows that's his greatest attribute. His main focus has been defense, and his efforts have helped the Rockets establish themselves as the league's fourth-best defensive team. Over the last eight games, Houston has recorded a defensive net rating of 108.6.
"He has had some really balanced games," Udoka said. "To take it back even further, he had a stretch of three double-doubles in a row. He had a triple double. I would not say his best overall game of the season. He has had a lot of balance games, scoring and passing the ball. But He had another good one."
Behind Green's play, Houston's record has improved to 31-35 amid their ongoing push toward the Play-In Tournament. Entering Saturday's interconference match against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Rockets are 11th in the Western Conference, sitting four games behind the Warriors.
Green is getting closer to helping the Rockets experience their first postseason action since the 2019-20 season. But after dropping Butler with a vicious crossover, Green is also getting closer to putting together an all-time top-10 list that will illustrate his talents for an eternity.
