Rockets Open Training Camp With Intensity

Brian Barefield | 9/28/2021, 5:38 p.m.
"Don’t leave until I say so,” a loud voice bellowed out from the other side of the court. All that …

"Don’t leave until I say so,” a loud voice bellowed out from the other side of the court. All that could be heard from that point on were individuals trying to catch their breath as they prepared to make the quick turnaround to complete the sprint drills.

Those individuals were the members of the Houston Rockets who were finishing a grueling opening day of training camp in Galveston.

“The theme was setting the tone for what we are going to be,” said Rockets head coach Stephen Silas. “It was a long hard practice and, that is what we are going to have to do. We are going to have to work hard, stay after it, and today was just the first step.”

Building team chemistry and getting adapted to the fundamentals of an NBA practice was the focus for coach Silas, as he has multiple players on his team that have not reached the legal age (21) to have an alcoholic beverage in the State of Texas, including three 19-year-old rookies.

Yet, coach Silas knows that he does not have a group of regular rookies in Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, and Usman Garuba. All three have experience playing professionally as Green spent last season in the G-League with the Ignite and Sengun (Turkey), and Garuba (Spain) played professionally overseas.

“That’s what makes them different,” Silas said during his press conference. “I just have to make sure that I am thinking about how they fit in and make sure that they know that I am thinking about them and their progress.”

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