At least the defense is active and they won t mess around. Maybe the Rockets new wing players can get more playing time?

In the previous NBA regular season, the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder at home narrowly defeated the Houston Rockets 125-124 after a hard-fought double overtime, making a good start to the new NBA regular season. However, the Rockets unfortunately suffered a bad start.

Although the Rockets lost the game, the team's new substitute wing player Josh Okogie performed well. Okogie played 19 minutes and 57 seconds, shooting 1 of 3, 1 of 3 from beyond the three-point line, and 5 of 6 free throws. He scored 8 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block. He also had 2 fouls and a plus-minus of -8. Okogie's performance on both offense and defense actually has certain highlights. On the offensive end, he also scored a certain amount of points despite not playing much time and taking a limited number of shots, providing the team with a certain amount of support. Moreover, he will not make random shots on the court, nor will he waste the team's shot opportunities. The most important thing is that he is indeed very effective on the defensive end. His personal defensive ability, his defensive aggression and defensive awareness are all very outstanding. His attitude on the defensive end is also quite positive, and he can also restrict Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to a certain extent.

Okogie was born in September 1998. He is 27 years old, 193cm tall and 96kg in weight. He is a wing player selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 2018 NBA Draft. The Charlotte Hornets acquired Okogie from the Phoenix Suns in a trade midway through last season. After joining the Hornets, Okogie played a total of 15 times in the NBA regular season, averaging 18.3 minutes per game. He averaged 8.9 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.8 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game. He also had 1 turnover and 1.3 fouls. He shot 38.8% from the field, 32% from the three-point range, and 77.4% from the free throw line. In the previous Men's Basketball African Cup, Okogie represented Nigeria in a total of 4 appearances, averaging 24.9 minutes per game. He averaged 14.5 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.5 blocks per game. He also had 3 turnovers and 1.5 fouls. He shot 48.9% from the field, 26.7% from the three-point range, and 90.9% from the free throw line.

In the previous NBA preseason, Okogie played a total of 4 times, averaging 20.4 minutes per game. He averaged 13 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1 steal, and 1.3 blocks per game. He also had 0.8 turnovers and 1.8 fouls. He shot 55.6% from the field, 40% from the three-point range, and 81.8% from the free throw line. Okogie's performance during the preseason was actually quite good. He showed good personal abilities on both offense and defense. He also proved that he is not only an excellent defender, he can provide all-round support for the team on the court. Judging from the situation of this game, there are certain problems with the Rockets' rotation. In contrast, Okogie can have a good effect on the court. Maybe in the next games, this player with a maximum salary contract will get more playing time and performance opportunities?