Tag: Jae’Sean Tate

Interviews: As Jalen Green blitzes Lakers, Rockets relish fourth straight win

Ime Udoka, Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, and Jae’Sean Tate met with reporters after Houston won its fourth straight game in Wednesday’s blowout of the Lakers.

HOUSTON — After Wednesday’s 34-point blowout victory at Toyota Center over LeBron James and the visiting Los Angeles Lakers, the Rockets have won four straight games.

With the win, Houston (4-3) is above .500 for the first time since early in the 2020-21 season — effectively three years. In this one, third-year guard Jalen Green was a dominant force. He had an uber-efficient 28 points in 21 minutes, and Houston was plus-24 with him on the court.

Granted, we’re only seven games into the NBA’s 82-game regular season. Thus, it’s far from mission accomplished. But new head coach Ime Udoka has his team looking more competent and livelier than it has in some time.

After defeating the Lakers, here’s what Udoka and Houston’s standout players had to say to local reporters. The Rockets return to action Friday versus the New Orleans Pelicans in what will be game six of their season-long homestand of seven games and their opener within the league’s new in-season tournament (schedule).

Winning streak: Rockets blast Kings as Dillon Brooks, Jabari Smith Jr. shine

Dillon Brooks and Jabari Smith Jr. combined for 47 points and 20 rebounds on elite shooting as Houston bullied its way past Sacramento and into a winning streak.

In Game 3 of the longest homestand of the season at Toyota Center, the Houston Rockets’ 107-89 victory (box score) over the Sacramento Kings (2-3) secured their first winning streak in Saturday’s.

Dillon Brooks and Jabari Smith Jr. were standouts on offense. Houston’s forward duo combined for 47 points; each shot at least 60% from the field and 50% from 3-point range.

Defensively, Houston (2-3) held the Kings to their lowest point total of the 2023-24 season. Sacramento had exceeded 100 points in each of its first four games, but they managed just 89 in Houston and only 36 in the second half as the Rockets pulled away. Malik Monk led the way with 18 points off the bench.

Houston’s key players included:

  • Dillon Brooks: 26 points, 9 rebounds, plus-25 in 38 minutes; 9-of-14 shooting (64.3%), 2-of-4 on 3-pointers (50%), 6-of-6 on free throws
  • Jabari Smith Jr.: 21 points, 11 rebounds, plus-4 in 35 minutes; 9-of-15 shooting (60%), 3-of-6 on 3-pointers (50%)
  • Alperen Sengun: 15 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, plus-27 in 34 minutes; 7-of-13 shooting (53.8%), 1-of-3 on 3-pointers (33.3%)
  • Fred VanVleet: 21 points, 12 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, plus-13 in 36 minutes; 7-of-22 shooting (31.8%), 4-of-14 on 3-pointers (28.6%)
  • Jalen Green: 10 points, 5 assists, plus-26 in 36 minutes; 4-of-10 shooting (40%), 0-of-2 on 3-pointers, 2-of-7 on free throws (28.6%)
  • Jae’Sean Tate: 11 points, 4 rebounds, plus-4 in 21 minutes; 4-of-6 shooting (66.7%), 3-of-3 on 3-pointers

Sengun held his own and then some against star Kings center Domantas Sabonis, who finished with 11 points and 15 rebounds. Sacramento was outscored by 26 points in his 31 minutes.

Here are highlights and interviews from Saturday night, along with reaction by media members and fans who follow the Rockets. Next up for Houston, as its seven-game homestand continues, is Monday’s rematch versus Sacramento. Tipoff is 7 p.m. Central.

Takeaways: Warriors hold off Jalen Green, Rockets as Steph Curry explodes late

Jalen Green led the #Rockets with 21 points and 9 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to avoid an 0-3 start after a late flurry by Golden State’s Steph Curry.

The Rockets stormed back from a 16-point deficit to grab a fourth-quarter lead, but they couldn’t hold it in Sunday’s 106-95 loss (box score) to Golden State. Houston, which played its home opener of the 2023-24 regular season. is 0-3 under new coach Ime Udoka.

The Rockets held Steph Curry in check for much of the game, but the future Hall of Famer erupted late with four 3-pointers in the game’s final six minutes as the Warriors (2-1) pulled away. Curry finished with a game-high 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, and he connected on 6-of-14 from 3-point range (42.9%).

Jalen Green led the Rockets with 21 points and 9 rebounds, though he shot just 8-of-20 from the field (40%) and 1-of-5 on 3-pointers (20%). Other Houston players of note included:

  • Alperen Sengun: 19 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds; 7-of-15 shooting (46.7%), 1-of-2 on 3-pointers (50%), 4-of-4 on free throws
  • Jabari Smith Jr.: 14 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals; 6-of-12 shooting (50%), 2-of-6 on 3-pointers (33.3%)
  • Dillon Brooks: 12 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists; 4-of-10 shooting (40%), 2-of-5 on 3-pointers (40%)
  • Amen Thompson: 9 points, 4 rebounds in 20 minutes; 3-of-5 shooting (60%), 1-of-2 on 3-pointers (50%)
  • Jae’Sean Tate: 6 points, 8 rebounds in 22 minutes; 2-of-6 shooting (33.3%)

Curry’s veteran backcourt mate, Klay Thompson, added 19 points for the Warriors and made 5-of-10 from 3-point range (50%). Overall, Golden State’s 18-of-45 night (40%) from long range proved too much of a math advantage to overcome for a gritty Houston squad that competed hard but made 9-of-33 shots (27.3%) from deep.

Here are highlights and interviews from Sunday, along with reaction by media members and fans. Next up for Houston, as a season-long homestand of seven games continues, is Wednesday’s matchup versus Charlotte. Tipoff from Toyota Center is at 7 p.m. Central.

‘Not what we want our identity to be’: Rockets struggle against physical Magic

“We came out on our heels a little bit, and they punched us in the mouth,” Jabari Smith Jr. says. “They came out aggressive. That was something we are not used to.”

ORLANDO — In the opener of the NBA’s 2023-24 regular season for both teams, the Houston Rockets visited the Amway Center to play the Magic. However, they quickly found themselves in a battle equivalent to 12 rounds with Roy Jones Jr., the former WBA heavyweight champion and a Florida native.

Orlando bullied Houston all game on its way to a dominant 116-86 victory on Wednesday night.

“We came out on our heels a little bit, and they punched us in the mouth,” Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. said. “They came out aggressive, and that was something we are not used to.”

Being bullied is not a character trait the Rockets want to develop or allow opponents to do to them consistently. In the past, teams have viewed them as a team that will retreat when physical pressure is applied on both ends of the floor.

“That is not what we want our identity to be, and we know that it can’t happen again,” Smith told reporters postgame. “It is good it happened the first game, because now we can flush it out of our system and be ready for the next one.”

The defensive game plan lacked the intensity to stop the Magic from scoring at will. Houston allowed Orlando to outscore it, 54-32, in the paint and dominate it on the boards, 57-31. It was a total reversal of what had worked perfectly for the Rockets in the five preseason games, when they finished 4-1.

Head coach Ime Udoka was not surprised by the physicality of the Magic, but he expected his team to respond with more passion.

“It was too easy for them to score all night,” he said. “It was early in the first half, as well. They were the tougher team and got every 50/50 ball, 16 offensive rebounds, and finished with seven-plus shots. But they were up 15 or so for most of the game, so they were the aggressor tonight. I didn’t expect us to wilt under their physicality.”

Orlando used an intimidation tactic and removed one of Houston’s strongest attributes by not allowing them to driv., The Magic consistently packed the paint with big bodies Wendall Carter Jr. and Jonathan Issac. It is a blueprint other teams will deploy until the Rockets prove they can hit midrange and 3-point shots.

“They (Orlando) have a big team over there, and the way they guard, we knew that they were going to be physical,” Rockets forward Jae’Sean Tate said. “The next game, we just have to be ready for a similar scenario with San Antonio, who likes to pack the paint also.”

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Takeaways: Jabari Smith Jr. leads Rockets in short-handed loss to Victor Wembanyama’s Spurs

Jabari Smith Jr. led the short-handed #Rockets with 20 points (50% FG) in 24 minutes, but Houston still suffered its first preseason loss on Wednesday in San Antonio.

In Monday’s exhibition loss to the Rockets, the Spurs gave top rookie Victor Wembanyama and talented young guard Devin Vassell a night off for planned maintenance.

In Wednesday’s rematch in the same building, both returned and made a clear impact in San Antonio’s 117-103 victory (box score) over a short-handed Houston side.

Vassell was electric with a game-high 25 points in only 25 minutes, shooting 8-of-14 from the field (57.1%) and 5-of-10 on 3-pointers (50%).

Wembanyama added 15 points and 6 rebounds in 21 minutes, although Jabari Smith Jr. offered capable defense to help limit the French phenom to 3-of-10 shooting (30%).

Though Wembanyama and Vassell returned for the Spurs, Jalen Green (toenail) and Tari Eason (left lower leg contusion) remained out for the Rockets. Houston veterans Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks and Jeff Green sat out to rest. Those absences, coupled with a nearly full-strength San Antonio squad, led to Houston’s first loss under Ime Udoka, whose team is 3-1 in the 2023-24 preseason. The Spurs are 2-2.

On offense, Smith led the way with 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting (50%) and 2-of-6 on 3-pointers (33.6%). The second-year forward grabbed 5 rebounds and hit 4-of-4 free throws over 24 minutes.

Rookie wing Cam Whitmore had 17 points, 6 rebounds and a game-high 6 steals in 30 minutes for the Rockets, though he shot just 4-of-15 overall (26.7%) and 1-of-7 on 3-pointers (14.3%). Veteran forward Jae’Sean Tate added 13 points and 4 rebounds in 21 minutes on 4-of-8 shooting (50%) and 1-of-2 from 3-point range (50.0%).

Nate Williams had 19 points and 8 rebounds off the Houston bench in 23 minutes, shooting 8-of-15 (53.3%) overall.

Here are highlights and interviews from Wednesday, along with reaction by media members and fans. Houston will conclude its exhibition slate on Friday night with a home game versus Miami.

As Houston veteran, Jae’Sean Tate sees hungrier team in 2023-24

“I think the rebuild is over,” Jae’Sean Tate says. “This is a whole new team, a new era of #Rockets basketball. I think hunger is the right word, to prove ourselves right.”

Houston’s current franchise rebuild unofficially kicked off in January 2021, once perennial All-Star guard and former MVP James Harden forced his way to Brooklyn in a leveraged trade.

The only current Rockets player around prior to Harden’s exit — in other words, on a Houston team that wasn’t yet in a rebuild — is defensive minded forward Jae’Sean Tate.

Now entering his fourth NBA season, Tate has seen it all over those years in Houston. But flanked by newly acquired veterans such as Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks and Jeff Green, Tate has higher hopes for the 2023-24 team and what its young core can accomplish.

“I think the rebuild is over,” Tate told reporters this week. “This is a whole new team, a new era of Rockets basketball. I think hunger is the right word … to prove ourselves right.”

Here’s a roundup of what all we heard from Tate at Monday’s media day from Toyota Center. Training camp officially begins Tuesday at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Complete Houston Rockets player ratings list for NBA 2K24 video game

Among #Rockets players, Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, and Alperen Sengun are leading the way in NBA 2K24’s initial player rankings for the 2023-24 season.

The looming release of the NBA 2K24 video game (Friday, Sept. 8) also involves learning NBA 2K’s ratings for all players across the league. To determine virtual skills, players are rated 1-to-100 across many categories, including a frequently disputed overall rating.

Courtesy of HoopsHype, we also have an idea how each player stacks up compared to his NBA peers. For example, the highest-rated players on the 2023-24 Rockets roster — veteran guard Fred VanVleet, third-year guard Jalen Green and third-year center Alperen Sengun — all have an overall rating of 83, per 2Kratings.com.

Based on HoopsHype’s data from last season, that would be tied for 57th overall while matching players such as Draymond Green, Klay Thompson, Jordan Poole, Mikal Bridges, Jonas Valanciunas, Jalen Brunson, John Collins, Desmond Bane and Nikola Vucevic.

Houston’s fourth-highest-rated player is Kevin Porter Jr., who has an 81 rating. That would be tied for 85th based on HoopsHype’s player data from the 2022-23 game cycle.

From best to worst, scroll on for the initial list of overall ratings involving  players on the 2023-24 Rockets. Additional ratings in other categories, such as 3-point shooting and dunking, are available at 2Kratings.com. Depending on results this season, these roster ratings could be adjusted in future NBA 2K digital updates.

In 2023 offseason, Rockets forward Jae’Sean Tate focused on shooting

“It’s always coming back to shooting, but also just being comfortable and being confident and taking the shots,” Jae’Sean Tate tells @KellyIko of his offseason work. #Rockets

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The 2022-23 NBA season was the third for Jae’Sean Tate, and it was effectively a lost one for the 27-year-old Houston Rockets forward. A nagging ankle injury limited Tate to 31 games and seven starts, with a career-low average of 21.8 minutes when he did play.

But after using the 2023 offseason to methodically build back strength, Tate is believed to finally be healthy. Going forward, his unique brand of rugged defensive intensity, versatility and playmaking as a passer could be valuable to new coach Ime Udoka.

While Tate will compete for forward minutes with Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, Dillon Brooks and Cam Whitmore. The lefty has a significant advantage in experience over all but Brooks, which Udoka may value as he sorts out his initial 2023-24 rotations.

Then again, even with advantages in experience and defense, Tate’s value is likely to be limited unless he improves as a 3-point shooter and floor spacer. Based on that, Tate tells Kelly Iko of The Athletic that shooting is his biggest offensive priority this offseason:

It’s always coming back to shooting, but also just being comfortable and being confident and taking the shots. For me, it’s not really the drill work; it’s just the game. Being confident in myself. That’s just one thing we’ve been trying to instill, being more confident in anything I do out there because my game has versatility.

Over three NBA seasons, Tate has averaged 11.2 points (49.8% FG), 5.1 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in 26.7 minutes, but he’s shot just 30.7% on 3-pointers. That includes a career-low 28.3% clip last season.

While it’s probably unrealistic to expect Tate to ever develop into an elite shooter, even just nudging his 3-point clip into the low-to-mid 30s could prove significant as it pertains to making defenders account for him at various spots on the floor. In recent seasons, defenders have often sagged off Tate when he’s behind the 3-point arc, which has compromised floor spacing and driving lanes elsewhere.

Time will tell, of course, as to whether Tate — a 2020-21 All-Rookie first-team selection — has finally made the requisite improvements. Training camp for the 2023-24 season opens in early October.

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Updated 2023-2024 Houston Rockets roster, salaries after free agency

After an extremely busy 2023 free agency, here’s an updated look at the #Rockets roster and salaries entering the 2023-24 NBA season.

When we last saw the Houston Rockets play a regular-season game in April, they were one of the NBA’s youngest teams and directed by a relatively unproven head coach in Stephen Silas.

The situation has changed significantly in the months since. Ime Udoka replaced Silas as head coach and brought in his own staff of assistants, while general manager Rafael Stone spent more than $60 million in 2023 free agency to sign veteran players Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, Jeff Green and Jock Landale.

Those veterans will surround Houston’s young core of Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Kevin Porter Jr., Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason and newly drafted 2023 rookies Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore.

As of early August, here’s an updated look at where things stand with the Rockets’ coaching staff and roster of players entering the 2023-24 NBA season. Many of the team’s newcomers will not have their jersey numbers revealed until closer to training camp, which is scheduled to start in early October.

Height and weight information is from NBA.com, while salary details are from HoopsHype figures. Ages are as of Aug. 1, 2023.

Report: Ime Udoka views Jae’Sean Tate as important piece for Rockets

Jae’Sean Tate is believed to be an important piece of Ime Udoka’s #Rockets puzzle and has been among the early defensive standouts this summer, @KellyIko reports.

For the 2023-24 season, the Houston Rockets already have a crowded forward rotation with recently signed Dillon Brooks and promising second-year talents Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason.

The recent trade of KJ Martin to the Los Angeles Clippers for draft capital was made largely with that logjam in mind, and many analysts wondered if Tate might be a similar casualty. At $6.5 million, he makes close to the same salary as Usman Garuba, TyTy Washington and Josh Christopher combined. All three were traded Saturday as part of deals to clear cap room.

But as new head coach Ime Udoka sees it, Houston’s rotation of forwards could be four deep. Per Kelly Iko of The Athletic, trade inquiries for  Jae’Sean Tate have been rebuffed this offseason, largely due to Udoka’s belief in the rugged 27-year-old forward.

Iko writes:

Rival teams that have inquired about Jae’Sean Tate’s availability at various points in the offseason have all been left with the impression that he’s considered an important piece of Ime Udoka’s puzzle.

In a subsequent article, Iko reports Eason and Tate have been “early defensive standouts” in the team’s summer workouts.

It should be noted Tate played occasional minutes as a backup center early in his NBA career, and that could be explored again in 2023-24. While shorter at 6-foot-5 than nearly all centers , Tate offers considerable strength and bulk. Houston’s second unit could offset some of that reduced length with the presence of 6-foot-7 Amen Thompson at point guard.

In three NBA seasons, Tate has averaged 11.2 points (49.8% FG, 30.7% on 3-pointers), 5.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 26.7 minutes.

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