Where Rockets rank among NBA’s 23 best players under 23 years old

In a new set of rankings, Houston’s Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Tari Eason, and Jabari Smith Jr. all checked in among the NBA’s best 23 players who are under 23 years old. #Rockets

Led by top prospects such as Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs, many young stars are vying to become the next face of the NBA. Many talents with the young and rebuilding Houston Rockets, including the likes of Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Tari Eason, and Jabari Smith Jr., could also be part of that distinguished group.

With that in mind, and as the NBA’s 2023-24 season is less than a month away from tipping off, For The Win’s Bryan Kalbrosky is ranking the league’s 23 best players who are under 23 years old.

So, why 23? Well, it is not just because that was Michael Jordan’s number. Typically, NBA publications rank 25 players under 25 years old. You can read versions of that here, here, and here. Kalbrosky wanted to try out a similar thought experiment, but with a new twist.

By the time players are 25 years old, many have already graduated to their second contract and are in vastly different chapters of their careers than the NBA’s young players. It is harder to compare players like Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum, who will each earn more than $30 million next season, to players on rookie scale contracts.

As a result, Kalbrosky’s rankings are primarily based on how his publication views NBA projections for next season. It is not aimed to be as predictive of their future success or longer-term potential.

Here’s where Kalbrosky ranked Houston players among his 23-person list, which can be read in its entirety here.