Red Nation Hoops: A Houston Rockets Pod

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Forrest Walker (@DUNOTS) discusses the Houston Rockets winning 9 straight games and putting themselves in position to make the NBA Play-In Tournament.

Topics include:

-How are the Rockets winning without Sengun?

-Ime Udoka’s adjustments

-Is Jalen Green back on track to stardom?

-Dissecting Green’s streaky scoring efficiency

-Amen Thompson emergence

-Jabari Smith’s steadiness throughout the run and this seaso...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Forrest Walker (@DUNOTS) discuss:

* Alperen Sengun likely out for the season

* Cam Whitmore out for three weeks

* What are the Rockets remaining goals for the season?

* Amen Thompson excitement

* Reacting to Jalen Green's scoring outbursts

* Where does Green rank among Houston's other prospects?

All that and more.

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Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Forrest Walker (@DUNOTS) discuss:

-Possible fallout from Tari Eason’s season ending surgery

-Reacting to Jalen Green’s latest scoring outburst

-What is the proper way to react to these games?

-Has Green put concerns about his starting spot to bed?

-Grading Rafael Stone’s tenure as GM of the Rockets

-Where does Stone rank among all NBA GMs?

-How does he compare to his predecessor, Daryl Morey?

-Are some fans w...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Forrest Walker (@DUNOTS) discuss:

-Rockets bench Alperen Şengün in crunch time

-Houston's reluctance to embrace Sengun as the franchise player

-The continued pushback of this reality

-Why is Houston still feverishly pursuing centers at the deadline?

-What should they aim to achieve at the trade deadline?

-Who are some realistic targets?

-Jalen Green's much improved play

-Is Green safe at the deadline now?

-Why...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Forrest Walker (@DUNOTS) discuss:

-Why have the Rockets struggled so much since Christmas?

-Is Houston regressing to the mean as a team?

-If they miss the play-in tournament, is this season a failure?

-What is a reasonable goal for the remainder of the season?

-Should the Rockets make a trade for the sole purpose of making the play-in tournament? -What kinds of trades should they pursue?

-Are any of the cor...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Forrest Walker (@DUNOTS) discuss:

-Jalen Green's improved play

-Has Green secured his starting spot?

-Cam Whitmore's monster production

-Is Whitmore a better prospect than Green?

-How did so many teams pass on Whitmore?

-The competition for Green's spot in Houston's core

-Alperen Sengun's ridiculous 3-week stretch

-Will Sengun make the All-Star team this year?

-Can Sengun be the best player on a title contend...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Forrest Walker (@DUNOTS) analyze Jalen Green's recent struggles for the Rockets (late upload).

Topics include:

-The cause of Jalen Green's struggles

-Do we still believe in Green the player?

-How can the Rockets help Green out?

-Ime Udoka's 4th quarter benchings of Green

-Will Udoka continue to start Green?

-Will the Rockets eventually trade Green? Should they?

-What kinds of Jalen Green trades are ac...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Chron.com's Michael Shapiro (@mshap2) discuss:

-What was the goal of Phase 2? Has that changed?

-How long does Phase 2 last? What does Phase 3 look like?

-Who are the "untouchables" on the Rockets?

-How will extension negotiations with Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun look?

-How have Jalen Green's struggles impacted Houston's vision?

-Will the Rockets trade Green? Should they?

-What type of star is worth ...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Chuck (@ChuckingDarts) discuss:

* A deep dive into how good the Rockets have been 

* Did either of us expect this?

* Is Alperen Sengun the franchise player?

* How should the Rockets build around Sengun?

* What kind of roster will the Rockets need long-term?

* Is Jalen Green the most obvious co-star candidate for Sengun?

* Other potential rostered co-stars (Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith, etc..)

* Are Rock...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Bleacher Report's Dan Favale (@danfavale) discuss:

-How surprising is the Rockets hot start?

-Is there an element of luck with some of this?

-Dan recalibrates his views on Alperen Sengun

-Has the Rockets front office regained some respect?

-Ime Udoka's impact on Dillon Brooks

-Why we shouldn't discredit GM Rafael Stone for any of this

-Jalen Green will take some time and that's okay

Plus:

-What do the Rocket...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) talks with Sports Radio 610's Adam Spolane (@AdamSpolane) about the Rockets 4-game winning streak.

Topics include:

-What's changed from the first 3 games?

-What's sustainable and what's unsustainable?

-Why fans are overthinking Jalen Green

-Why aren't Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun playing more together?

-How have Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks helped the Rockets?

-Will the Rockets make an upgrade at the ...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Michael Shapiro (@mshap2) of the Houston Chronicle come up with 5 stat-free observations for the early season Rockets.

Topics include:

* Alperen Sengun's undeniability

* Rockets concerning bench units

* Cam Whitmore's absence from the rotation

* Ime Udoka resonating with the young talent

* Dillon Brooks' two-way impact

* Jalen Green and Jabari Smith's defense

* Houston's continued shooting woes

* Ways...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) previews the 2023-24 Houston Rockets with play-by-play broadcaster Craig Ackerman (@ca_rockets) of Space City Home Network.

Topics include:

* Reasonable internal/external goals for the season?

* Will Ime Udoka give Alperen Sengun a fair shake?

* Is Jabari Smith due for a snap-back season?

* Can Amen Thompson be in the Rookie of the Year race?

* Does Cam Whitmore stay in the rotation this season?

* Will Jal...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and  @LockedOnFantasyBasketball  host Josh Lloyd (@redrock_bball) project the Houston Rockets from a fantasy basketball perspective and, more broadly, as prospects moving forward. The two also discuss how much of an upgrade Ime Udoka could be to Stephen Silas.

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Salman (@SalmanAliNBA) talks with Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) USA Today Sports about the Kevin Porter Jr. situation before previewing media day.

Topics include:

-Will KPJ's contract get voided by the league? If it happens, how would that impact the Rockets (if at all)?

-How likely is it that KPJ is just waived outright by the Rockets?

-If KPJ is dumped in a trade, what could a return look like?

-Is Buddy Heild realistic? Robert Williams?...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) talks with Rockets PA Announcer Jonathan Sanford (@TheJSanford) to discuss his years with the Spurs, his move to Houston, his relationship with Ime Udoka, what Udoka will bring to the Rockets going forward, and more.

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Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) discusses Houston's offseason with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale (@DanFavale) before ranking their young prospects based on:

-Overall belief in the players

-Ceiling of the players

-Likelihood to be the best player on the Rockets

Ali and Favale also discuss the importance in Houston finding their "North Star" prospect as soon as possible, Rafael Stone's tenure as a GM, and more.

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Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) down the Rockets Summer League w/ Rafael Barlowe (@Barlowe500) of NBA Big Board including:

-All things Jabari Smith

-How did Cam Whitmore fall to Houston at 20?

-How will the Rockets manage all this young talent?

-Will any player get lost in the shuffle?

-Can Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks aid in player development?

-How will Ime Udoka approach roles, minutes, and usage?

-Will everything truly be up for grabs?

-...

Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) and Alykhan Bijani (@Rockets_Insider) discuss:

* The Rockets choosing Fred VanVleet over James Harden

* Ime Udoka’s influence over free agency

* What does Fred VanVleet bring to the Rockets?

* How does he make Jalen Green better?

* Houston’s asset mismanagement and failed pursuit of Brook Lopez

* How Alperen Şengün could make Houston’s summer look foolish

* Why Salman believes the Dillon Brooks contract is fine

*...