Some questions have plagued the Houston Rockets all season long. They all revolve around offense.

This team’s defense has been watertight. The Rockets have been one of the best defensive teams in the NBA all year. By contrast, their ability to generate buckets has been inconsistent.

Sometimes, it boils down to not having a reliable superstar in the halfcourt. Alperen Sengun has been the closest thing. His inability to shoot threes limits him as a first option, but when he’s efficient around the basket, the Rockets’ offense hums.

Against the Warriors, that will prove to be a challenge.

Rockets need star performance from Sengun

Zach Lowe agrees. He’s one of the best minds in basketball. He’s identified a potential barrier towards offensive dominance for Sengun in this series.

“(Sengun) is going to have to be the answer to the question of…how do the Rockets bend the defense at the end of the games…and that’s been tough sledding for Sengun against Draymond”

-Zach Lowe

It’s a fair point. Sengun has averaged 17.0 points, 11.2 rebounds, and 4.4 assists while shooting 47.1% from the field against Golden State this year. That’s a fine performance, but you’d like to see a higher field goal percentage given that Sengun was 0/5 from three-point land. A 47.1% field goal percentage looks mediocre when it comes mostly on twos.

That’s been an issue for Sengun all year long.

Sengun needs to be his best self

In 2024-25, Sengun shot 67.9% between 0 and 3 feet. It’s his worst percentage inside the paint since his rookie year. His efficiency in that area seemed to improve throughout the year, but in the aggregate, he stagnated. Sengun shot 51.8% on two-point field goals for the season, and the same percentage after the All-Star break.

Sengun’s dip in efficiency is easily excused. He made incredible strides on defense this year. Sengun is likely adjusting to playing hard on both sides of the ball. The Rockets organization will take the trade-off, for now. Eventually, they will need him to return to his previous levels of two-point efficiency.

Ideally, that would start in the playoffs.

It’s worth noting that Sengun averaged 11.2 boards against the Warriors this year. That’s higher than his season-wide average of 10.3. When the Warriors play Green at the 5, they’re at a size disadvantage. The Rockets need Sengun to leverage his physicality in those minutes, not just on the boards, but scoring inside as well.

Yes, the Rockets would like Jalen Green to be a playoff riser. That feels like more of an independent variable. He’ll either sink or swim.

Sengun is presented with a unique matchup. He’s substantially larger than Green, but Green is one of the best defenders in NBA history. Whether Sengun finds a way to create an advantage or not could be a critical storyline to watch in this matchup.

If he can, the Rockets should be able to get buckets.