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Getting to know Jalen Green, the potential Houston Rockets star

Ben DuBose
·2 min read

As many had projected, the Houston Rockets picked 19-year-old Jalen Green at No. 2 overall in the first round of Thursday’s 2021 NBA draft.

An explosive 6-foot-6 guard with significant potential as a scorer, Green averaged 17.9 points (46.1% FG, 36.5% on 3-pointers), 4.1 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 15 regular-season games at this year’s G League bubble. Green was one of the first elite prospects to take advantage of the league’s new “professional pathway” program, which he believes offered superior NBA preparation relative to college basketball.

Courtesy of a press release from the team, here’s a few quick facts about Green’s background prior to the NBA.

Green (6-6, 178), who turned 19 years old on Feb. 9, was the first player to sign with NBA G League Ignite, a team dedicated to the development and mentorship of top young prospects in preparation for the NBA Draft. In 15 G League games last season, he averaged 17.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.53 steals, and 2.1 3-pointers made. Green tallied 30 points, 7 assists, 5 boards, and 3 steals in the Ignite’s lone playoff game vs. Raptors 905.

As a senior at California’s Prolific Prep in 2019-20, Green averaged 31.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists. He was ranked as the No. 1 high school prospect in the Class of 2020 by ESPN and was a McDonald’s All-American.

Green won gold medals with USA Basketball at the 2019 FIBA U19 World Cup, 2018 FIBA U17 World Cup, and 2017 FIBA Americas U16 Championship.

The only other time the Rockets drafted a player second overall was in 1970 with the selection of Rudy Tomjanovich. Houston also acquired the draft rights to Steve Francis, who was the No. 2 overall pick by Vancouver in the 1999 NBA Draft. Including Francis, the second overall pick has produced 16 Rookie of the Year winners, most recently Ja Morant in 2019-20 and Kevin Durant in 2007-08.

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