Fred VanVleet is EXACTLY What the Rockets Were Missing

We've got to talk about the Rockets. 5-0 to start the season. Ahmed Thompson had maybe the best defensive play I've seen in a long time. I've seen it a long time. Yeah, he's a dog, man. He's a dog. Man, swatting away Victor Wembanyama. Victor, we've got to add a later show. Like, if the Spurs had lost on Wednesday night, I would have added the Spurs to this topic, but they found a way to come back and beat the Jazz. One of the most epic implosion in overtime of that game. But Amin Thompson. Elite defensive play. They've got two wins over Atlanta, one over San Antonio, beat Milwaukee the other night. So not the toughest schedule necessarily in the world, but three of those wins have come on the road. They are second in the NBA in offensive rating. They are ninth in the NBA in defensive rating. So if you're top 10 in both categories, you are by definition a championship contender. What do you think of Houston? Like, is this real? Like, are we buying the Houston Rockets? As maybe more of a contender than people thought coming into the season. Yeah, 1,000. I think it's definitely real. Even when you brought up they're second in the league in offense and rating. They're 20th in pace. So that's just telling you they're getting down. They're not rushing things, but they're getting efficient quality shots. And they're moving the ball around as well. And I think that's a sign of a good team, especially early on. But the most important thing is their depth and their size and physicality. They're just big as hell. Like, they're able to get into people. They have a lot of experience in life. You know, Marcus Smart has missed four games. Steven Adams has missed a couple games. But you're going on the bench, and you're pulling out both arms by Donovan. That's your eighth or ninth man. Like, there's some elite players here. When you're looking with, you know, familiarity of size and skill and the defensive intensity that they have, it's going to be tenacious. But I think the one thing that's a cheat code, it's like, yo, we got everything. But the one thing that you forget in the last five minutes, we have a closer, a legendary scorer that can get us over that hurdle. We have a point guard that can make big-time shots. We have Iman Thompson that can lock up anybody. And we have Alperen Sengun that is literally downhill coming at your neck and taking it to the next level. So I think they're serious. I think they're going to be tough. I think even that game in San Antonio when they played, it kind of showed where they can be at, and that was on the road. I think they're going to be a tough, dangerous team. And if it comes down to KD closing you out with a bunch of weapons around him, that's good luck. Yeah, KD averaging a nice, tidy, efficient 22.4 points per game, shooting 55% from the floor, 50% from three. Sengun, looking at his numbers, 58% from the floor, 66.7% from three. This is a small sample size, by the way, 2.3 attempts per game. So the stars are showing out. But, you know, coming into this year, I was preaching that Fred VanVleet's going to matter. Like, Fred VanVleet is going to matter. Like, forget the numbers. Like, he's not, last couple of years, he has not been a high-efficiency guy. Look, he's still not a high-efficiency guy. Less than 40% from the floor, mid-30s from three-point range. He is a steady, reliable guy out there. He's going to give you 30-ish minutes per game and be able to initiate the offense. And him being there, and I've heard Kevin Durant talk about this, it kind of allows everybody else to slot back into their usual positions. Like, Amin Thompson doesn't need to be the point guard on this team. Reed Shepard doesn't need to be the starting point guard on this team. Kevin Durant doesn't need to have the ball in his hands initiating some of the offense. It just allows everybody To be themselves. And that's been a huge difference maker for the Rockets this season. The steady, reliable presence of Fred VanVleet. And look, they're not even playing up to their level yet. Like, Reed Sheppard's shooting like, I think it's like 28% from three, and he's shooting like eight of them per game. 28.1% from three. That number's going to go way up. Like, Reed Sheppard is too good a shooter to shoot 28% from three. If he gets into the mid to high 30s, that offense, That already potent offense is going to be really, really good. So I think the Rockets are the real deal. I knew they'd be really good defensively because all Ime Udoka teams are good defensively, but their efficiency offensively has been a game changer. One other thing is a They're one of those teams out there that you've got to watch before the deadline. Like, you've got to watch them. Like, Rafael Stone has done an excellent job of doing the deals that he has, most notably the Durant deal, but not getting rid of all his assets. He's still got some draft picks he can deal. He's still got some very interesting young players that might be attractive to teams. You've got Jabari Smith, who's having a heck of a start to the season. You've got Sheppard. Um, who is a really good player, former top four, a third overall draft pick. Um, like, you know, we keep hearing the name Kyrie Irving that's out there. And I think Kyrie will be out there. Could you imagine Kyrie Irving with this team? Like somebody of that ilk with this team that could upgrade maybe the point guard position a little bit more. I, I, I think they, they've got, they've got a move to make a potential move to make. They are a team to watch before the deadline because they're a strong team now. But I think there's a window where they could get a lot stronger. Yeah, 1,000%. I think they're dangerous either or. You add Kyrie, you add, obviously, a level that takes it to superstardom, championship, contender, media, and everything else. What do you... What do you think that does to the overall camaraderie? Do you go from a team that's in-depth, that has 10 hard-nosed, blue-collar guys that we're going to be into you? Or does it switch over where Kyrie's going to play 32 minutes and now we're kind of going to a finesse brand of basketball? Sometimes I feel as though Mike Dowell back because Fred Van Fleet, his background is tough. Wichita State, I'm getting out the mud, is gritty. We've seen somewhat of a Kyrie-KD duo where you sit still and it's like, will they be mature enough to hold each other accountable to get over the hump and keep that championship tenacity? That's all I'm saying. You know what I mean? Yeah, yeah, I do. I think Kyrie, it's a separate topic. I think he's going to be the most in-demand player at the trade deadline. Okay. He's not on the Mavericks timeline. And we talked about Houston. I think Detroit's on the team that will be salivating over getting Kyrie Irving. They're off to a great start. Oh, wow. Yeah, damn. I think the Mavericks have a chance to get some real assets back in return for a player that's been good for them, great locker room guy for them. He's really turned himself around in Dallas from his previous stops, but you have a chance to really replenish the draft picks in a deal for Kyrie Irving. Before we get out of here, Do you ever notice they always just, they try to find a LeBron build and just throw Kyrie with them and they're like, yo, you might make the championship. Like, because it's LeBron, Kyrie, then they threw Luka, Kyrie together. And it's like, you know, Cade is one of those people that only done what, only people that done what Cade has done is Kyrie and LeBron. And you see that big 6'7", 6'8", do it all 0.4. And then you just see a killer score right next to him. Do you think Certain dudes are like, hey, bro, this might work one more time. Yeah, look, I think five years from now, Dallas is going to be looking for the next Kyrie Irving, someone that can play opposite Cooper once they hopefully ascend to a different level. I watched the Pistons some. When Jalen Duren is your secondary scorer, that's fine for some regular season games. In the playoffs, you're going to get beat. And you put Kyrie next to Cade, ooh. Is Kyrie that elite of a 1B? Like, is damn near, like... Oh, I think so. I mean, he's a shot maker. I'm just saying, like, when you sit there, like, hey, you might be able to bring this guy over and bring that guy. But, like, when it comes to 1B, he's going to do some 1... He's most guaranteed to do some 1A ----. Is that how it's read? I think so. I think so. I thought it was interesting watching some of these Dallas games. I watched the Dallas-Miami game the other night. Like, down the stretch, usually when Kyrie would have the ball to, you know, kind of do Kyrie things, they put the ball in Cooper's hands. Cooper was making plays, man. Bro, bro, bro. Cooper was making some plays. Hey, I was skeptical, bro. Cooper's, hey, Cooper's, and he could have had 40-something. He literally was getting his guys and, like, hey, that's a bad boy, bro. I don't even want to say bad. When I saw it, I said, man, he was better than Giannis. And Giannis is an old-school attack mode. And Cooper was on some chill, I-know-how-to-win type. Like, did you feel that? He was almost like, wait, I know how to win. I know how to play. He literally turned it on. And he was going at Wiggins. Then take it into the paint on Giannis and Bam. Like, he was being nice that night. He should have had a 40-point triple. That white boy, Cole, he's here. Am I tripping? No, he had an up and under on Bam. Like, Bam went up to challenge thinking Cooper was going to go for the dunk. And Cooper just kind of, like, floated underneath the rim and got a reverse layup. His bag is deep. And he's starting to make threes now, too. Bro, and then low key, bro, it looked like. Correct me if I'm wrong. It looked like he was hooping with his little bros. It looked like he was hooping on a smaller rim. Am I bugging? No. He was kind of looking at big-ass dudes. I was like, watch out, little bro. It kind of looked crazy. He's moving different, bro. It's real. The leap is real. I figured it would be. He's the kind of kid, and I've profiled him in the past for SI. Like his, um... Like his improvements year after year, like getting to high school, getting to Duke first year in the pro, like he gets better every single year. Historically, he gets better. And I think he's going to be, I mean, you got to win really to be kind of an all-star contention. I'm not sure the Mavs will win enough games, but he's going to be an all-star level player this year. No doubt. He's a man. He's a man out there. He's 19. He's dominant, bro. That ---- look crazy. Shout out to Cooper.