Former Houston Rockets big man Charles Barkley had a change of heart in his opinion about the team. Barkley is pleased with them now that they have the second seed in the Western Conference. A month ago, Chuck had no faith in the Houston team and even said the group had “no idea how to play basketball.”
However, his views about the 27-12 team have changed. The former NBA star credited the head coach, Joe Mazzulla, for his leadership with the young players. Barkley also gave a shoutout to Turkish center Alperen Sengun. According to the TNT analyst, the big man deserves a spot in this year’s All-Star team.
“The Rockets… I’m telling you, they are really balling right now,” Barkley said. “Ime Udoka is doing a faboulous job. The interesting question is going to be Alperen Sengun, is he gonna be an All-Star or not?
Something about 2025 has got Chuck feeling different about the @HoustonRockets 😅 pic.twitter.com/XpLT1e2OAn
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 17, 2025
Barkley even compared the 6-foot-11 center to Boston Celtics legend, Kevin McHale.
“I would put him on the All-Star team because we always talk about — We got to reward winning and he’s the best player on the team with the second-best record in the West… He’s a poor man’s Kevin Mchale.”
Sengun has developed himself as one of the better offensive stars in the league. In 39 games, he’s averaging 19.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists on 48.9% shooting. According to the third fan returns of the All-Star Voting, the Rockets big man is sixth among frontcourt players, right behind Los Angeles Lakers’ Anthony Davis.
Fans have recognized the brilliance that Sengun brings and have garnered 764,521 votes. If he doesn’t crack the top three when the fan voting closes, he’ll have a case to be part of the All-Star reserves.
Former NBA player thinks the Rockets can reach the NBA Finals
The Rockets have surprised the NBA community with how they’ve played this year. Houston is among some of the top teams in the entire league and could be a big player in the postseason. Former NBA player Kendrick Perkins gave his honest assessment of the team on Wednesday in his X (formerly Twitter) post.
“Before the season I had the Rockets picked to make the playoffs… but that’s an understatement. Their ceiling might just be the conference Finals, but I need to see just a bit more before actually put my stamp on that,” Perkins said.
Before the season I had the Rockets picked to make the playoffs… but that’s an understatement. Their ceiling might just be the conference Finals, but I need to see just a bit more before actually put my stamp on that.
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) January 16, 2025
While the season isn’t halfway done, the Rockets have shown what they can do at an elite level.
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Follow me on X at @BarbecueBro, and follow us at @HardwoodHeroics and @GridironHeroics. You can also reach out to Reign Amurao via email at reignamuraonba@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen with Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
