Houston Rockets: 5 small-ball players to target in free agency
By Dalton Sell
Houston Rockets small-ball target – Jeff Green
In an effort to bolster their frontcourt depth, the Houston Rockets signed Jeff Green to a 10-day contract earlier this season. After playing stellar basketball, they signed Green for the remainder of the season, and they should look to retain him for next year.
Playing in 18 regular season games with Houston, two of them being starts, Green flourished with the Rockets’ small ball identity. The 6’8″ big man oftentimes found himself at the center position, where he averaged 12.2 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.7 assists with .564/.354/.857 shooting splits in 22.6 minutes per game.
Once the postseason rolled around, the team relied heavily on the 34-year-old over their 12 games, upping his usage. In 28.4 minutes per game, Green averaged 11.6 points on 49.5 percent field goal shooting and a fantastic 42.6 percent from behind the arc.
Prior to signing the initial 10-day contract with Houston, Green was sitting at home after being cut by the Utah Jazz after 30 games this season. Small-ball rejuvenated the big man, and he is the ideal player to have in a system like this. Given his prominent role this season, bringing back the veteran makes sense for the Rockets.
However, Shams Charania of The Athletic ($) recently reported that a handful of contending teams would look to pursue Jeff Green this offseason. Perhaps the Houston Rockets could pursue him to stay, given his success with them this season, but only time will tell.