Rockets offense surges to first place! Who is the biggest beneficiary of 8-for-1 Durant? One person is happier than Shen Jing

The Rockets' offensive efficiency soars to the top of the league! Who is the biggest beneficiary of the 8-for-1 trade to acquire Durant from Houston? Two reasons prove that one person is happier than Shen Jing.

The Rockets' offense soared and ranked first

Since Udoka took over the Rockets two years ago, defense has always been the biggest label of the young Rockets. Last season, they returned to the playoffs as the second seed in the Western Conference with their top-five defensive performance in the league.

In sharp contrast is the team's poor offensive performance in positional warfare. With top-level defensive counterattack resources and a massive secondary attack brought by their absolute advantage in offensive rebounds, the Rockets can only deliver a mid-range offensive performance in the league.

As a result, so far in the new season, the Rockets, who lack core point guard Van Jordan, are still delivering amazing performances on the offensive end.

According to the statistics of the US media "Kalshi Sports", the Rockets' offensive efficiency of 125.2 (score per 100 possessions, the higher the better) since the start of the game has surpassed the 76ers to rank first in the league. At the same time, the net efficiency value of +9.2 (net rating per 100 possessions, the higher the better) ranks fourth in the league.

Durant's joining is undoubtedly the core reason why the Rockets have greatly improved on the offensive end. Especially when he and Shen Jing are on the court at the same time, the Rockets, with two offensive cores inside and outside, have significantly improved their offensive choices and performance.

Meiji Evan Sidery also pointed out this through specific data. Since the start of the game, when Durant and Shen Jing are on the court at the same time, the Rockets' offensive efficiency will further soar to 131.9, ranking first.

At the same time, the defensive efficiency also improved to 112.8, which ranked 13th in the league, and the net efficiency also reached +19.1, which ranked first in the league.

One person is happier than Shen Jing

It is not difficult to see from the data that Shen Jing is obviously one of the biggest beneficiaries after Durant joined. Compared with his former partner Jaylen Green, after joining forces with Durant, Shen Jing faces significantly less pressure on the offensive end.

Since the beginning of the season, he has averaged 23.8 points, 8 rebounds, 7.2 assists and 2 steals per game, shooting 57% from three-point range, and averaging 2 three-pointers per game. Except for rebounds, all other statistics are career highs.

But Shen Jing is not the biggest beneficiary of the Rockets' 8-for-1 exchange of Durant. The American media "clutchpoints" revealed two reasons that Jia is the biggest beneficiary of Durant's joining.

Reason 1: Better shooting space

Since the Rockets' offensive space has always been very poor, Jia Jia, as one of the team's few high-volume space points, had to face huge defensive pressure. After Durant joined, this point improved significantly.

Even though Durant has only averaged the second-lowest 17 shots per game in his career since the start of the season, with the first lowest being in his first season with the Warriors, he has brought the same strong offensive threat and attraction to the team as when he joined the Warriors, and continues to create open shots for his teammates.

Just as Jia Jia said against the Raptors: "One moment I partnered with Durant, and the next moment I appeared next to Shen Jing. The opponent had to choose 1 of 2 and double-team them. This will happen throughout the season."

In this game, Jia also played the best game of his career next to Durant and Shen Jing, scoring at least 25+5+5 in a single game for the first time in his career.

So far since the beginning of the season, despite obviously poor shot selection, Xiao Jia has still averaged a career-high 15.8 points per game and a 37% three-point shooting rate. He averages 6.8 three-pointers per game and 2.5 three-pointers, both career highs.

Reason 2: The perfect role model

Durant is a perfect role model for Jia on both offense and defense. The two have been training together during the offseason of the past three seasons, and this continues to be the case after Durant joined the Rockets.

Considering that the two have similar body types and both have outside shooting abilities, Durant will undoubtedly play a mentor role in Jia's growth process.

Jia made no secret of this in an interview with the local media "Space City Home Network" in Houston. He said frankly that Durant is a selfless teammate and a good role model, and he is happy to learn from him.

It can also be seen from the ranking of average touches per game compiled by Meji Bradeaux from the beginning of the season to the present, why Jia is the biggest beneficiary after Durant joined.

Since the start of the season, Xiao Jia has averaged 23.5 touches per game, a significant increase compared to last season, successfully tying Amen and tying for third place with the Rockets, second only to Durant 37.5 times and Shen Jing 42 times.