Maximizing Kevin Durant Is Crucial For The Rockets

All-time scorer and future Hall-of-Famer Kevin Durant did what he was brought in to do for the Houston Rockets, and then some. He was acquired to be a lead scorer, capable of hitting tough buckets in the clutch and putting pressure on opposing defense throughout the game.

However, the Rockets also asked him to be an offensive initiator, bringing the ball up the floor and starting the offense from beyond the three-point line. That's not the ideal way to utilize a scorer of his caliber, and the Rockets must find a way to allow Durant to get back to doing solely what he does best.

Durant is not incapable of initiating offense. Pick-and-roll sets between he and Alperen Şengün were always likely to become staples in the offense to provide multiple options from one action.

However, the frequency at which the Rockets depended on the Durant-Şengün pick-and-roll was not sustainable, and required Durant to make too many decisions with the ball that did not include knocking down shots at a high rate.

The issue was, there were no other viable pick-and-roll partners for Şengün on the squad.

Amen Thompson started finding minimal success near the end of the season playing off of Şengün screens, but his lack of a jump shot takes away one of the important options for a pick-and-roll ball handler. Both screener and handler are more effective at the rim, or Şengün was forced to become the mid-range threat, an area he struggled at throughout the season.

Reed Sheppard showed the most promise with his handling, but he struggled to find the same chemistry with Şengün that he did with Clint Capela.

Returning veterans should be able to help. Fred VanVleet opens every possible option on a screen play, and Steven Adams has historically been effective setting screens with non-shooters as the main ball handlers.

The important part is making sure Durant is nowhere near that initial action. He'll still be expected to run that play on occasion, but it may work better as a secondary action after the first has already made the defense off balance.

Durant works best when he can get the ball on a pass for a wide-open three, or when he has established position in the mid-range for a quick move and shot.

He is so deadly with two or less dribbles, that requiring him to dribble more than that is a disservice to his reputation as an elite and efficient scorer. Turnovers, bad passes, and tough shots were much more common than normal for Durant, mostly because he was playing a role out of necessity. The Rockets have to fill that role in a more satisfactory way to get the best possible version of Durant.

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