Alperen Sengun can't be ignored anymore after dominating the Spurs

The Rockets were seen as underdogs heading into Friday's matchup with the Spurs, but Alperen Sengun was a man on a mission. After being constantly overlooked and criticized in the offseason, Sengun has come out of the gate firing this season. He put up 29 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists against Victor Wembanyama and firmly outplayed his Spurs counterpart.

Sengun is staking his claim to stardom

Houston's young stars are all hungry to prove themselves and showcase their growth from last season. But Sengun has stood out the most so far by playing Wemby as well as anyone has. He constantly went at the Frenchman fearlessly in the paint, leading to a lot of finishes at the baskets and even some and-ones.

Sengun has somehow improved upon his already-refined post game this season. He's looking more comfortable than ever driving the ball and operating around the paint. His physicality has always been a strength, and was a perfect counter for Wembanyama's length. On top of that, he also hit 2-of-4 shots from three-point range to punish Wemby's help defense tendencies.

The high profile of dominating against Wemby will raise Sengun's star in the national media, but he's been consistently great for years. This season can be a monumental one for the Rockets, as Kevin Durant approaches a big decision on his future. But Sengun is playing at a level that will push the Rockets into championship contender status and hopefully keep Durant around for good too.

The Rockets love what they are seeing

Houston needed Sengun to take another leap in order for the Rockets offense to function well. He's tasked with being a high-volume scorer and playmaking hub since his early days. But he's also adding more shooting capability now to fit well with his teammates.

Sengun has been up to the challenge so far. His evolution is a testament to his hard work in the offseason, but also better team construction from the Rockets. Sengun benefits tremendously from having guards who can consistently feed him in the right spots, whether it's a post entry pass or a bounce pass to attack off the pick-and-roll. After having no experienced point guards last season, Sengun suddenly has two this year.

Fred VanVleet and Marcus Smart have been a revelation for Sengun and he's paying them back in kind. Sengun is finishing well off nice feeds, but also finding his guards for open threes. He's racking up solid assist numbers to start the season and proving he can get his teammates rolling until he needs to take over himself.

Against the Spurs, Sengun came through in the clutch with a superstar performance. He had 14 points in the fourth quarter alone on superb efficiency. Without question, he dominated Victor Wembanyama in that direct head-to-head matchup down the stretch.

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