[OFFICIAL] Rockets select Jalen Green with #2 overall pick

BROOKLYN, NY. — Two hours before the 2021 NBA Draft, as the rain fell pitter-patter outside of Barclays Center, Jalen Green waltzed onto the mini runway and headed for the podium on the main floor with former teammate Jonathan Kuminga.

Green, who wore a shiny, sparkling grey Balmain ensemble flanked by the exquisite orange threads Kuminga donned, was supposed to be taking pre-draft pictures — a yearly tradition for the green room invitees. But he paused and raised his head, almost standing still in time, soaking in the moment. This was where he wanted to be. This was the culmination of years of hard work, blood, sweat and tears.

Other top talents like Cade Cunningham, Jalen Suggs and Scottie Barnes waited nearby for their turn at the mantle. USC’s Evan Mobley stood off the to side, moving back and forth anxiously. The atmosphere was eerily similar of a pregame scene before a critical playoff Game 5 — apprehensive, but exciting at the same time.

A few minutes later, Green sat alone at his designated table with an NBA ball placed beside him, opening up his phone and taking selfies. The excitement was practically dripping from his face. When the entire group was called back on stage to take final group pics, Green was the only one who decided to stick out two peace signs, grinning ear to ear.

Talk to anyone close to Green and they’ll tell you that’s really who he is. Always laughing. Cheerful. Genuinely happy for the success of others. It’s why he screamed “Yea Scott! What I tell you, Scott!” when he ran into close friend Barnes in the hallway before embracing him in a bear hug. Barnes was drafted fourth overall by the Toronto Raptors, the first surprise of the evening.

“I’m just a goofy, outgoing person,” Green told The Athletic in an exclusive draft night interview. “I like talking to people, connecting with people. I care about people. That’s just who I am, a very loving person. But at the same time, I still got that side to me.”

Green is someone who moves in love. And the minute commissioner Adam Silver called Green’s name and announced he would be a Houston Rocket, the entire arena gave the love right back.

“Honestly, after hearing my name getting called, that’s when I really took it in,” Green said. “I got to hug my mom, see her cry, see her smile. That was the best moment for me. After that, everything was normal again, reset.”

The Rockets, led by general manager Rafael Stone, did a copious amount of background work, scouting and interviews with prospects in the weeks leading up to the draft. When it came to the second pick, Houston refused to publicly marry itself to one selection, something that aligns directly with how Stone operates. There was some degree of appeal with Mobley as there would have been with Jalen Suggs and Green.

But on the day of the draft, as word came down that the Pistons were more or less settling on taking Cunningham, Houston’s position came into form as well. Members of the Rockets brass met some four hours before the draft to finalize plans and strategy. Green was going to be their guy.

“Jalen is a uniquely blessed guy,” Stone told reporters following Houston’s busy draft night. “He’s a transcendent athlete. He runs faster than people and he’s athletic in a super functional way — it’s not rigid, it’s fluid. He can handle the ball and he can shoot. We think that combination of tools makes him an extraordinarily exciting prospect.”

Hearing Stone talk about Green’s on-court attributes reminds you why his name was called right after Cunningham’s. It honestly could have been the first off the board, that’s how much Detroit liked him. And what’s not to like? Green is explosive, he can score from anywhere on the floor, has the swagger to take over games and the mettle to win them playing team-first ball. He has a shifty handle, quirky jabs and a bag full of tricks.

But the Rockets aren’t trying to make the playoffs tomorrow. They’re rebuilding. If you imagine the organization as the construction of a house, right now they’re still putting the floor plan together. You need the right people to complete it.

In other words, ecosystem is just as important as talent in this transition. Houston is trying to reset its culture, spearheaded by head coach Stephen Silas. He wants to build a winning environment. To do that, you need folks who actually want to win, not players who care about individual box scores after games. Unselfishness. Humility. A strong work ethic. Those are the traits Silas and the coaching staff are seeking in the development of this young core.

Green has possessed all those characteristics and then some since middle school. His old coaches say it. His old teammates say it, whether it be from 8th grade, high school or in the G-League. Stone said the background they did on him showed he was always working, always in the gym.

“Houston fans, you got you one,” said Dennis Scott, former NBA player and current Turner analyst. “I spoke with Brian Shaw personally. Jalen has it. Now that B-Shaw cosigned him as a worker, give Stephen Silas a chance. I think y’all got something.”

“My why is my family,” Green said. “Where I came from, how I was raised. My mom raised me, single-mother household. I grew up around all my sisters. I just had goals for myself. I’m not just playing this game because I love it, I live it because I actually want to be the best in this game. That’s where it comes from.”

Green was blown away when he met with Houston. From a workout standpoint, he impressed, as usual. But he was enamored with the coaching staff, appreciative of the front office. He began to see the foundations of something tangible that he could be a part of for years to come. “They have goals for themselves that I can help with,” Green said. “Come in and impact. I just love the organization in Houston. The city is amazing too, on top of that.”

His time in the G League with the Ignite prepared him for this moment. When he would be asked about some of his favorite things off the court, he pointed to learning about financial literacy and mental health. Playing for the Ignite, there was always a target on the team’s back. Other teams looked at them with almost a vengeful eye, hell-bent on taking them down during the season.

“It was different,” Green said. “Nobody expected us to win as many games as we did. The fact that we even went out and won a playoff game is crazy. Just because we’re five young guys that came out of high school. We not supposed to be doing this, all these dudes should be killing us right now. We learned a lot, we figured it out and that was the biggest part. We can take what we learned and everything we learned into the NBA.”

 

The Rockets might not have necessarily worried about fit on draft night, taking four rookies with upside. It’s probably too early to start thinking about potential starting lineups now, as exciting of an exercise those can be these days. But once training camp and opening night roll around, they’ll need to have those plans in hand.

Green is currently listed as a shooting guard. He’s 6-foot-5 and with that size and his skill set, it’s reasonable to assume he could slide in at small forward alongside John Wall and Kevin Porter Jr. Silas has often spoken about having multiple ballhandlers on the floor at the same time, and there’s certainly intrigue around a lineup boasting those three names flanked by Christian Wood and one of the Jae’Sean Tate/Danuel House Jr. options.

But this would mean Green is playing small forward. Now, because of how NBA games go and rotations/minutes/fouls, Houston’s on-court five will change constantly. Positions these days are more blurry than in the past, with teams just opting for versatility and shape-shifters.

Regardless of what the case may be, Green is prepared for it. Point guard, shooting guard, small forward, whatever.

“Honestly, I’ll do whatever I gotta do to win,” Green said. “If that’s what I gotta do so we win, so be it.”

One question that won’t come about regarding Green is his ability to score the ball. In the G-League, he averaged 17.9 points per game, shot 36.5 percent from behind the arc on nearly six attempts per game, shot 83 percent at the free-throw line and did all of this while taking only 13.6 shots a night. He’s been pegged as one of the league’s premier scorers in the near future because his bag is endless.

“The different type of ways we work on scoring, I feel like I’m a three-level scorer,” Green said. “And at the same time, I got that killer mentality. I want to kill whoever’s in front of me. I think that’s all you really need. And the tools, you’re just working on sharpening everything up. I just like getting buckets.”

Houston doesn’t really run plays, but more sets. Those sets have branches that players can operate out of depending on what the defense presents. Silas likes sneaky backdoor cuts, off-ball screens, timely double drags and every quirky action under the sun that gets the defense moving. No doubt he’ll have Green involved in a plethora of his sets to keep him moving and put him in the best position to be effective. Rockets fans should salivate imagining Green sprinting off a Wood-Porter stagger screen on the left wing, getting the ball back and flowing into a pick-and-roll or dribble handoff with another ballhandler. The options should be endless.

“Anywhere,” Green said. “Put me anywhere. The corner, the wing, the top [of the key], halfcourt, fullcourt. Ask me to get a bucket and I promise I will.”

Aside from Green’s scoring acumen, the Rockets will work to further develop his playmaking. He averaged 2.8 assists in the bubble but should figure to become a more mature passer playing with and learning from Wall. Porter made strides last season. Green is certainly capable of making NBA reads. Some of his highlight reels feature backbreaking dimes. It’s more about the game-to-game consistency and on-court independence. There will be times in games where Green might be looked at as the first or second playmaking option. Green says he’s studied players similar to himself who have improved in that department.

“As a playmaker, I watched a lot of D-Book (Devin Booker),” Green said. “Book is a good playmaker, he developed into that over these last couple of years. Brad Beal can make plays but he’s mostly known for his scoring. I think my playmaking ability can really take off next year, just focusing on different ways to score and reading the defense.”

Silas will also work with Green to make him a better defender. Green says he wants to be All-Defense in the league, but he means it. When he was in Houston, he and Silas spoke a great deal about defense. Silas rewards those who defend hard by giving them minutes in his rotation. Green’s defense will be tested at the next level, given his young age and his thin frame, but he vows to push himself just like the other parts of his game. His time in the G League introduced him to multiple defensive coverages and how to read games, valuable knowledge that he’ll carry with him on his next team.

“I’ma lock in with Coach Silas,” Green said. “That’s something we talked about on the visit. That’s something I got from Brian Shaw and everyone else I’ve talked to. They see it in me, other people see it in me. That’s something I already have for myself. I just want to be able to say I can score on somebody and lock you up at the same time, too. I think it’ll all work out.”

All in all, Green is excited to get to work. After being drafted, he was buzzing through the bowels of the arena. No matter how many appearances he had to make, how many Zoom calls he had to commit to, each was met with enthusiasm and grace. This is what Green always envisioned himself doing. He didn’t get here by himself, something he’ll always mention. Green has a strong support system, key figures that have had his back throughout this whole process of getting to the NBA.

“I think my mom and my brothers,” Green said of his biggest influences. “I call them my brothers, they really are my friends. They had my back through this all. They helped me through a lot, guided me. And on top of that, my mother, she’s so hardworking. She provided me with everything —she raised me. I think that’s where it comes from. “

Embrace Green, Houston. There’s something to be excited about. A young core in place, a goal at hand. Now, the work begins.

“H-Town, I’m coming,” Green said. “We gonna put on a show. We gonna turn up the city and hopefully we get to a championship. We gonna do something big, I feel it too.”