2 Dream starting 5s for the Houston Rockets in 5 years

The future can be scary.

Houston Rockets fans know this. There's so much uncertainty surrounding this team. Nobody knows what this team will look like in five years.

That won't stop us from taking an educated guess. It won't stop us from dreaming, either. With so many possibilities ahead, we can still identify a dream starting lineup in 5 years.

Here it is.

The versatile Rockets lineup that could break the league

Dream Lineup 1

C: Alperen Sengun
PF: Jabari Smith Jr.
SF: Amen Thompson
SG: Devin Booker
PG: Reed Sheppard

We know. You're offended. We'll level with you - we're offended. That's right - we've offended ourselves.

Jalen Green is absent from this list. Feel free to use your imagination. If he breaks out as a superstar in Year 4, he can take Booker's place.

Part of that breakout will have to include consistently elite shooting. That's critical to making this lineup work. We're assuming that Sengun does not develop into a knockdown shooter, and we're assuming that a three-point attempt is a last-ditch effort - at best.

So, that's three-out spacing - let's call it three-and-a-half. Sengun should be able to get to a level where he connects on open threes. Still, most of this team's offense will have him operating inside the arch.

Luckily, Sheppard and Booker should be the best-shooting backcourt since the Splash Brothers. Defensively, they'll be a different story. Can the Rockets survive a small backcourt with Sengun in the middle?

We're not sure. We're counting on Thompson and Smith Jr. to do a lot of lifting in this scenario, and who can say whether that's sustainable?

That's why we came up with another dream lineup.

Rockets dominate defensively with this lineup

Dream Lineup 2

C: Jabari Smith Jr
PF: Tari Eason
SF: Cameron Johnson
SG: Jalen Green
PG: Amen Thompson

Go ahead and plug any 3-and-D wing into Johnson's place. We chose him because he's likely to be available soon, and his lucrative contract will have expired in five years.

Otherwise, there are a couple of concepts at play here. Firstly, we're surrounding Thompson with floor spacing so he can effectively operate as a primary ball-handler. We've also kept Green in this case. This group is likely to lean on transition in a way that would maximize his speed.

Defensively, this lineup tries to switch everything. Other than Green, everyone in this group is at least 6'8".

What happened to Sengun? Frankly, we're not sure. We know that he doesn't fit with this concept. Let's say the Rockets traded him for a handful of first-round picks and Johnson's contract in a multi-team deal.

What about Sheppard? In this instance, he's a super sixth man. That would likely be Eason's role in the former lineup. Will they each prove too talented for that role? We're not sure - that's what makes the future so exciting:

And scary.