The Rockets have been pleasantly surprised by their performance in the new season. Although only a short start, Fred VanVleet seems to be the most reliable of the players, signing a three-year 1300 million contracts. VanVleet has become one of the league's leading players in assists per game. Another newcomer to the Rockets is small forward Dillon Brooks, whose performance has proven that his four-year, $86 million contract is worth it. His superb three-point shooting percentage and the league's best wing defense make him an indispensable member of the Rockets.
This is a great blessing for the Rockets. In addition to this, point guard Aaron Holiday has also been excellent in recent games. Against the Thunder, for example, Holiday scored 22 points and six rebounds, while shooting an astonishing 6-of-7 three-point shooting. This season, Holiday is averaging 18 games per game8 minutes, contribution 74 points, 22 assists and 21 rebound, he shot 50% from the field and 43 from three-point range5% and a free throw shooting percentage of 857%。
Despite the fact that the height is only 183 meters, but he's very strong and one of the NBA's top scorers. In the point guard position, he has been holding the ball for long periods of time, but in the last 12 games, he has only committed two turnovers, which is very rare in the point guard position. Compared to VanVleet's ball-handling core, Holiday is clearly more consistent, which is impressive. Holiday himself has highlighted that he can help the Rockets with solid shooting, tough defense, and ball handling. In fact, these are exactly his three basic skills with the Rockets.
The Rockets need other players to complement VanVleet, and they need a great shooter who can handle the ball and shoot threes as well as a good defensive player. Obviously, Holiday fits all three of these criteria perfectly. Compared to Jalen Green, he has better shot selection, a higher shooting percentage, a better defensive ability, more consistency in ball control, and even fewer turnovers. All five of these skills make him even better than Jalen Green. While Jalen Green is still the Rockets' mainstay at shooting guard, Aaron Holiday's stunning performance is bound to have an impact on head coach Udoka.
Perhaps, Udoka's next goal is to put Jalen Green on the bench and give up the starting point guard position to Holiday . In this way, in the Rockets' backcourt position, there is a theoretical battle between Holiday and Jalen Green. However, it is actually the Rockets who benefit, as internal competition can directly improve the team's record. After all, those who have the quality will naturally come out on top, while those who are incompetent will be eliminated. Arguably, the rivalry between Jalen Green and Holiday is a microcosm of the Rockets' internal rivalry this season.
It's this fierce competition that has made the Rockets a huge improvement this season.