Average of 14+5.6, but why is Van Jordan the lifeblood of the team? The assist and turnover ratio is the answer

After Van Vleet's season reimbursement in the past two days, it can be said to be a "five thunderbolt" for Rockets fans. The Rockets experienced a very successful free market transition period in July, and led Turkey to the European Championship finals at the end of August and early September. They also felt the progress of the Little Fire Dragon. And by the end of September, this is really bad.

But Fan Datou's injury is quite polarized. Some people think that the Rockets have lost their main control and the sky has collapsed. On the other hand, some fans believe that this may be an opportunity for the Rockets, and they may also take this opportunity to accelerate the growth of Shepard and Amen. I personally think that Van Vleet's two-level reputation is so inconsistent, and I personally think it has something to do with the style of playing.

First of all, I emphasize that in this matter, I personally prefer the former. "I think VanVleet is very important, and the Rockets have no replacement at the moment." But equally, I personally believe that the Rockets should not have the mentality of competing for the championship this season to "rush to the top 4-6 in the Western Conference" if they hurt someone.

Signing Durant is for the Rockets to do everything possible to open the window within 2-3 years, and the plan cannot be changed because a main player is injured.

Then why is VanVleet important?

VanVleet is indeed not a good scorer. Last season, he averaged 14.1 points and 5.6 assists, and his true shooting percentage is only 51%. As a point guard, his strength is indeed below the passing line.

can easily underestimate his actual influence on the game. However, his most core value lies in his extremely low turnover rate. As a main controller, he averaged only 1.5 turnovers per game, a rare stability that is the cornerstone of the Rockets' offense being able to operate smoothly.

He did not win with gorgeous passes, but with his excellent game reading skills, he always made the most reasonable decisions to ensure that the team executes the correct tactics. On the court, he is like an extension of head coach Uduka, always directing his teammates to take the place and stabilize the offensive rhythm. This invisible leadership is crucial to a team with many young players.

We have always said that the Rockets had constipated offense and had poor offense last season, but in fact, the Rockets' offensive efficiency was not bad last year, with an offensive efficiency of 114.9, ranking 12th in the NBA.

This is a big reason for this because the Rockets' defenders' style is stable and the Rockets dominate the ball. They are the best offensive rebounding team in the NBA and have a clear advantage. This helps, but they also minimize mistakes. Houston ranked 11th in turnovers per game (13.9 times).

Last season, Jaylen Green ranked 200th in the league in terms of assists and turnovers per game with only 1.4 assists and turnovers per game without Fan Datou's average of 3.8 assists and turnovers per game (9th in the league) at the bottom, the Rockets' mistakes would not be 11th in the league.

How to operate next for the Rockets?

The second-year rookie Shepard was pushed to the front. Although he is good at shooting and ball quotient, he lacks a lot of practical experience at the NBA level and may also become a weakness for opponents to target on the defensive end. It can be predicted that at the beginning of the season, when Shepard was in charge, the team's turnover number is likely to increase significantly, and the offensive fluency will face huge challenges. The burden of

fell on Amen's shoulders at the same time. Although Amen has historically physical fitness and excellent straight-line breakthrough ability, he has only rarely been in the starting point guard position in the past two seasons, and his experience as an offensive organizer is seriously lacking. More importantly, his current unstable outside shooting (with less than 30% of his three-point shooting percentage last season and even not enough shots) will make the opponent dare to shrink the inside, thereby squeezing Shin Kyung and Durant's offensive space.

Amen's advantage lies in its unparalleled athletic ability. His pick-and-roll cooperation with Shin Kyung has shown potential - he can use his speed to directly attack the basket, and can also assist Shin Kyung who is on the way down after attracting defense. If this style of play can be operated efficiently, it will effectively drive external shooters such as Durant and Jabarry Smith Jr. to form a three-dimensional offensive system. What Amen needs to prove is that he can not only brush more "fatless" data on the basketball court (such as offense and defense conversion, manufacturing mistakes, 1v1 defense and other things that the ball master can see), but what Amen lacks is the most intuitive influence on the court, such as scoring and connection. Once he really does these points well, he may jump from the front-line to become an All-Star player.

is still the same sentence, this is part of sports. Players are injured every year. Fans can only pray for his recovery soon. The Rockets hope VanVleet will return at the start of the 2026-27 season.