1 Surprising stat that proves Rockets' Jalen Green is growing

Houston Rockets fans have a complicated relationship with Jalen Green.

The consensus is not firm. Some remain stalwart in their belief that Green is the franchise player. Others would trade him for a bag of magic beans. Even if the beans were proven decidedly unmagical, they'd justify the swap as addition by subtraction.

It's hard to know where to land on Green logically. The talent is obvious, but the production has waxed and waned. The only consistency about Green is the questions about his consistency.

Otherwise, fans have lamented a lack of variety in his skillset. How does Green impact winning when he's not scoring the ball? When the three ball isn't falling, can he still be a positive presence?

Green is answering those questions recently.

Rockets' Jalen Green makes unexpected development

Across his last five games, Green is averaging 5.0 assists per contest.

As is always the case with Green, there's - here's that word again - inconsistency baked into those stats. Two games with a whopping 8 dimes are buoying the overall average.

Green was never billed as the next Rajon Rando. This stat represents development. Moreover, the eye test indicates that he's making a wider range of passing reads. Green is learning how to get his teammates involved. It's encouraging:

Is it enough to solidify his place in this team's hierarchy?

Rockets still need Green to score

Over that same sample, Green is shooting a putrid 34.0% from the field:

No, not from three-point range - from the field.

That's unequivocally dismal. Green leads the Rockets in field goal attempts in 2024-25. In simple terms, he needs to hit more shots if he's going to maximize his effectiveness.

Take the Rockets' last game against Orlando. A 97-84 win does not come because of how well a player is orchestrating the offense. This was one of Green's 8 dime performances. To be sure, he resembled a point guard more closely than he has throughout most of his NBA career:

But the Rockets won the game by outrebounding Orlando 61-39.

It was an ugly watch. It was the type of rock fight the Rockets have been winning all year.

Is it sustainable?

Any growth is good growth for Green

Let's dial the pessimism back.

Fred VanVleet is seemingly day-to-day. Amen Thompson is out. Even Reed Sheppard is missing. The only active Rocket who's even nominally a point guard is Aaron Holiday.

That's not good.

So, Green is stepping up, and that's encouraging. For him to be the best version of himself, he needs to be capable of setting up teammates while also scoring efficiently. At least he's halfway there:

Every Rockets fan should celebrate that.