Though he was named Tuesday to the NBA’s slam dunk contest and Rising Stars competition at its 2022 All-Star Weekend, it hasn’t been the best few weeks for Houston Rockets rookie Jalen Green.
The 19-year-old, who was selected at No. 2 overall in the first round of the 2021 NBA draft, is shooting just 26.5% from the field and 14.3% on 3-pointers over his last eight games for the Rockets.
Nonetheless, it remains very early in Green’s NBA development cycle, and former league MVP and Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal offered a strong endorsement Tuesday of Green’s future during a television segment for TNT’s pregame show. Regarding Green, who currently ranks fifth among rookies in scoring (14.1 points per game), Shaq said:
I want to say something that’s going to sound strange, but we’re all players here. When I say it, they’re going to understand what I’m saying.
Once he learns how to “play” basketball, he’s going to be a star. Of course he can play, he’s talented. But each time you get to a different level, you have to re-adjust your game and learn how to play. It’s not all about dunking, and it’s not all about flashy play. Once he learns how to slow down, develop his game, and says ‘This is who I want to be as an NBA player,’ he’s definitely going to be a superstar.
Candace Parker & SHAQ talking about Jalen green pic.twitter.com/xABW4Cv04m
— Rockets Capital 🚀 (@Rocketscapital1) February 2, 2022
Fellow panelist Candace Parker, who won a WNBA championship in 2021 as a player with the Chicago Sky, compared Green to Russell Westbrook — who won an NBA MVP award in his Oklahoma City days.
“He played really well at the beginning of the season for Houston,” Parker said of Houston’s top rookie from the 2021 class. “He’s long, he’s wiry, he’s athletic. He reminds me a lot of a Russell Westbrook, just with his long, lanky athleticism. Can get up and defend.”
Green will have a golden opportunity to break out of his slump on Wednesday night when the Rockets face the Cavaliers and Evan Mobley, the No. 3 overall pick (right behind Green) from the same draft class. Tipoff from Toyota Center is set for 7:00 p.m. Central.
