The Houston Rockets are almost TOO young for this series. Several of their top guys are rookies, who I have notable left off this series, because you can't really make a jump when you haven't played a base season yet. Despite this, they do have a good crop of guys who are early in their careers, and who do qualify to be on this list. I do think these guys are relatively obvious, but nevertheless, here are three Houston Rockets that you should expect to make big jumps this upcoming season.
Kevin Porter Jr. has had an interesting start to his NBA career, and yet he's still one of the most promising young guys in the league. His time in Cleveland came to an infamous end when he basically forced his way out after his locker was given away during some time away from the team. He ended up on a Houston team that had just said goodbye to their franchise player in James Harden, thus thrusting Porter into attempting to fill some of the very large shoes left empty by Harden's departure. Despite this sounding like a daunting task for a young player who hadn't had a ton of responsibility up to that point, Porter used it to prove himself as a seriously good player. He put up averages of 16.6ppg, 6.3ast, and 3.8trb in his first season as a Rocket. Despite Porter being joined by some guys that are expected to take some of his touches, I expect him to solidify himself as the guy on this team this season. I'm not expecting all-star numbers, but I am expecting him to increase all of his averages this season, and I don't think that should be surprising in the slightest.
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Another guy who has had an odd trajectory in his NBA career is Christian Wood. Wood made appearances for five other teams before landing with Houston a year ago. In his sole season with Detroit he showed flashes of future all-star potential, potential that only grew in his start with the Rockets. Last season he posted averages of 21ppg, 9.6trb, and 1.2blk in a campaign that nearly resulted in him winning the Most Improved Player award. This season Wood will be making a similar push, but this time it will be for his first all-star appearance. Wood will likely be the first option on offense for Houston this season, as well as being a defensive anchor for the young team. Wood is a seriously good player in this league, and for the time being is the face of this Houston Rockets squad.
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Ja'Sean Tate was a pleasant surprise for the Rockets last season. The rookie got lucky, as the Rockets going from being a contender to a bottom feeder put him in the perfect position to get quality minutes on an NBA team. By the end of the season he had averages of 11.3ppg and 5.3trb on his way to making an all-rookie team appearance. The one downside on Tate is that despite being only a sophomore, he is already 25, meaning there may not be too much more development left for the guy. However, I do think he hasn't quite hit his ceiling yet, and that this season he will be an even more important piece for this Rockets team. Even as a second year guy, he is still a veteran on this squad, so you can expect him to continue to get quality minutes and touches. You can expect Tate to continue his momentum from last year this season, as his responsibilities grown on this young and promising team.
pc: Darren Abate/Associated Press