Fred VanVleet’s playmaking keeps paying off for the Rockets

The Rockets offense is rolling so far with Alperen Sengun playing like a superstar. It already looks a lot better than last season, and a major reason why is Fred VanVleet’s presence as a facilitator and playmaker. VanVleet may not seem like a huge difference-maker based on his counting stats but his passing has been instrumental to helping Houston’s offense flow better and get his teammates better opportunities.

VanVleet is the perfect glue for the Rockets offense 

In 3 appearances this season, VanVleet is averaging 7 assists per game. In the one game that he missed, Reed Sheppard stepped up as the starting point guard and poured in 7 assists of his own. In either case, the improved playmaking compared to last season has helped everyone and VanVleet is the main driver.

Not only are teammates directly feeding off VanVleet’s own assists, but they’re also getting better secondary playmaking opportunities as a result. The clearest indicator is Sengun’s assist numbers, which are also at 7 per game. Many of those are coming off short roll reads when VanVleet feeds him on pick-and-roll actions.

Houston can be an elite offense with VanVleet

The game is coming easier this season for Sengun and everyone else. Even Kevin Durant is getting easier looks; he’s up to 54% from the field and 47% from three. With the offense humming this way, the Rockets look like a title contender.

The Rockets often struggled to close out games effectively last season, including multiple blown double-digit leads late in games. Their clunky offense deserved a fair share of blame for those blown leads. But VanVleet’s return from injury has been a direct fix for those issues.

Houston is shooting the ball better from every area of the court with VanVleet back at the helm. He’s not the only reason for their newfound offensive success, but he does make it easier for all his teammates to succeed. As an experienced point guard, he knows where to get his teammates the ball to optimize them, even if they’re not necessarily open immediately.

The best thing about the Rockets’ early offensive success is that they don’t need to be perfect for a real title shot. Their defense is good enough that a great but not elite defense can make them a threat against any team in a playoff series.

 Last season, that formula fell apart as injuries led to an incredibly lackluster playoff offense. But VanVleet can fix some of the most pressing issues while also giving his teammates better chances to tackle the finer details. His impact on the offense will be something to monitor all season long as he proves his essential value and empowers other Rockets.

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