3 reasons the Rockets should consider changing Jalen Green's position

3. Huge jump in efficiency and scoring rate

The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of Jalen Green at point guard is his usage rate. His overall usage from the 2022-23 season finished at 28.3%. When Jalen played Shooting guard (which was 80% of his total minutes), he logged 27.8% usage rate, which would put him in the 91st percentile amongst shooting guards in the NBA.

For comparison, his 30.4% usage rate while slotted at the point guard spot (18% of his minutes) would only put him around the 85th percentile. While his personal usage rate increased while playing the point guard position, his relative rate amongst that group is actually lower compared to the shooting guard group. This, to me, is one of the first signs that show he can take on an increased role and produce, while not being at the tippity top of the league in terms of usage rate.

His scoring rate while slotted at the point guard position actually astronomically increased compared to when he played at the 2-guard spot. Per 100 shot attempts, Jalen Green logged a pedestrian 105.8 PSA (points per 100 shot attempts), ranking him amongst 24th percentile for shooting guards. When playing point guard, that number vastly jumps up to 118.8 PSA, which would be in the 76th percentile amongst point guards who qualified.

The traditional efficiency measures also had a bump when he switched over to point guard duties in spurts. When he played the 1 spot, his effective field goal percentage jumped from 47.6% (12th percentile, YIKES) to a respectable 53%.

His overall jump shooting also got better. He logged 46% on all mid-range attempts when he played the point guard spot, which would put him in the 70th(!!) percentile among the position. Jalen's 3-point percentage jumped from 33% on all attempts to 39%!! (68th percentile). This is very encouraging percentages when looking ahead at how efficient Jalen can be when he is put into that position.

The jump in scoring rate and efficiency is insane when you really dig deep into the numbers, and, like I said before, its very encouraging when projecting ahead. Jalen overall was mildly inefficient last season, but these numbers help showcase that he can in fact potentially be elite efficiency wise. Playing more at the point guard spot may help.