Fresh off an historic scoring run to end Jalen Green’s rookie season, which led to a spot on the NBA’s All-Rookie first team, executives around the league appear bullish on what the Houston Rockets guard can do for an encore in his second professional season.
As tabulated by HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, Green ranked No. 5 when executives were asked to project their biggest breakout players entering the 2022-23 league year. The only players ranked higher than Green were Philadelphia’s Tyrese Maxey, Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton, Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards and Orlando’s Franz Wagner.
Green finished in front of Detroit’s Cade Cunningham and Cleveland’s Evan Mobley, who were the other top-three picks in the loaded 2021 draft class.
“The game really started to slow down for Green the second half of last year,” an NBA executive told Scotto. “His athleticism was always there, but his shooting and decision-making all took a jump, and he started to figure things out. Christian Wood’s absence will also create more opportunities.”
The complete results can be read here.
Story: Who are the top breakout candidates for this season? I polled 20 NBA executives to find out on @hoopshype. https://t.co/FgbosADsdA
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) October 19, 2022
Green certainly looked on the verge of a breakout in the recently completed preseason, averaging 22 points (43.3% on 3-pointers) and 3.3 assists in 26.3 minutes. The Rockets went 3-1 in those games.
As for the regular season, the journey begins for Green and the Rockets on Wednesday night in Atlanta. Tipoff from State Farm Arena is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Central.
