Ime Udoka is the perfect coach to save Rockets from Fred VanVleet disaster

With Fred VanVleet injured, the Houston Rockets' championship odds have taken a major hit. Luckily, if any NBA coach can lead them to the Finals with limited point guard depth, it's Ime Udoka:

He's done it before.

Recall the 2021-22 Boston Celtics. Udoka ushered them to the NBA Finals. If not for some unfortunate off-court antics, he'd still be in Beantown.

The roster looked an awful lot like the one the Rockets are about to field.

Rockets' Ime Udoka has been here before

Marcus Smart led those Celtics in Assists Per Game (APG) at 5.9. Alperen Sengun can hit that mark. So can Amen Thompson. Smart is one of the best perimeter defenders of his generation, but he's no star playmaker. He hit those numbers out of necessity - somebody needs to make the passes.

As a whole, Boston was a middle-of-the-road playmaking team. Their 24.8 APG ranked 14th in the league. Their 289.0 passes per game ranked 12th, and their 8.6 assist-to-pass ratio ranked 14th.

Udoka's Celtics kept it simple. There was less emphasis on making bold gambles and more emphasis on making safe passes. The team's primary offensive objective was to create mismatches for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to score in isolation.

Granted, that's VanVleet's role. He's among the most efficient volume passers in the NBA every year. He'll undeniably be a tremendous loss for the Rockets, but they may be able to stay afloat with Udoka's guidance:

As long as somebody steps up.

Rockets will still need playmaking

As my esteemed colleague recently pointed out, the path likely starts with more playmaking reps for Alperen Sengun.

Over the last couple of years, he's become too reliant on working the pick-and-roll with VanVleet. The Rockets need to get Sengun the ball in both the high and low post and let him make decisions. For Sengun's part, he needs to leverage his immense passing creativity by making quicker reads consistently.

Thompson can contribute as well. He's got dynamic floor vision. We've seen Thompson make some jaw-dropping passes, but his on-ball reps have been limited throughout his NBA career.

Durant is a solid passer. Some growth from Reed Sheppard would be nice. If the Rockets can focus on replacing VanVleet by committee, they may be able to salvage this season.

It won't be easy. VanVleet is a steadying presence that the team has come to rely on. The only silver lining is that the Rockets have a coach who's had tremendous success without a traditional point guard in the past:

Here's hoping he can save the Rockets' championship dreams.