Rockets Alperen Sengun Ranks as Top 15 Athlete Under 25

Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun has had a larger than life catapult into superstardom, especially when factoring in his draft position and situation just four short years ago.

He wasn't a lottery draft pick. And he didn't even start on a 20-62 win Houston Rockets team.

Those days are long over. And seem so far away.

Sengun is universally regarded as one of the top players at the center position.

He made the All-Star team in his fourth season and third overall as a starter.

And he rose to the occasion in his first taste of postseason play, despite being defended by Golden State Warriors generational defender Draymond Green, with averages of 20.9 points, 11.9 rebounds and 5.3 assists.

The 23-year-old standout center immersed himself as one of the best basketball players in the world this past summer, wasting no time to continue his run after the Rockets' postseason ended in heartbreaking fashion.

In FIBA's EuroBasket tournament, the Rockets star averaged 21.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 6.6 assists, ranking top ten in the circuit in scoring and top ten in the gamut in rebounds and assists.

Sengun also became the youngest player in EuroBasket history to post a triple-double.

This season, in 2025-26, Sengun has taken on a much more significant role as the Rockets' offensive initiator, particularly in the half court.

Unsurprisingly, as the Rockets needed to somehow stave off the injury to starting point guard Fred VanVleet, or at least try to.

The Turkish center is leading the Rockets in assists, with 6.7 assists, while also leading the team in rebounds at 9.3 grabs per game, in addition to averaging 22.6 points.

Sengun's star could not be blossoming any better. He's surely on his way to another All-Star selection and could be on his way to his first All-NBA selection (especially if Denver Nuggets superstar center Nikola Jokic, whom he's drawn endless comparisons to, is forced to miss a significant amount of time and misses the 65-game mandate).

And according to Bleacher Report, Sengun was a top 25 athlete (among all sports) under the age of 25.

The Rockets standout center came in at 15th.

"On a team with Kevin Durant and Amen Thompson, Alperen Şengün is the Houston Rockets player most likely to crack the middle and back ends of this season's MVP ballot.

Munch on that for however long it takes for the bonkersness of it to take hold.

Şengün's bandwidth for running the offense like a 6'11" point guard has prompted comparisons to Nikola Jokić. In truth, he plays with more of a blunt-object force that's more similar to Domantas Sabonis.

That is not meant to take away from Şengün. His peak is itching to climb higher than that of Sabonis', thanks in large part to his defensive utility. If his three-point volume and efficiency continue to climb, Şengün's place in the overall star ranks will foment some uncomfortable discussions."

All told, there were only three NBA players rated ahead of Sengun: Detroit Pistons star Cade Cunningham, Minnesota Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards and San Antonio Spurs Frenchman Victor Wembanyama, who topped the list.