The Houston Rockets are flying high after their dramatic win over the San Antonio Spurs, which saw them improve to 2-0. They had sights set on win No. 3 Saturday against the Atlanta Hawks, and Alperen Sengun was more than doing his part.
Early in the third quarter, the Turkish big man decided to take the ball down the court against “The Great Barrier Thief” himself, Dyson Daniels. Sengun then decided to do it all by himself as he drove past Daniels and threw down a slam dunk through traffic.
Sengun has had a strong start to the season for the Rockets. Over the first two games, he's averaged 26.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 6.0 assists. And he kept up his fine overall play against the Hawks. He finished with 17 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists to lead the Rockets to a 121-114 win.
Point guard Fred VanVleet was rested on the second night of a back-to-back, but the newfound balance in the Rockets offense continued against Atlanta. Seven Houston players had 11 or more points, led by Kevin Durant's 22.
The return of VanVleet has been a welcome addition to Sengun, who no longer has to have quite as much responsibility as a facilitator on offense. But as he showed with his amazing drive and dunk against the Hawks, he is still more than capable of calling his own number and putting the ball on the floor at times.
The Rockets will take on the Hawks again, this time in Atlanta, for the second half of their home-and-home on Monday.