Alperen Sengun’s name is already showing up in the early MVP conversation, and the first edition of the NBA MVP Ladder has him sitting at No. 6.
That placement comes with a clear explanation from NBA.com’s Shaun Powell, who pointed to the way Sengun is driving Houston’s offense.
“He leads the Rockets in scoring, rebounds and assists, nearly averaging a triple-double. This reflects growth in Sengun, especially as a distributor; he sharpened his passing skills last season when the Rockets were without Fred VanVleet, their starting point guard.”
The names ahead of him are the heavy hitters you’d expect at this stage: Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic, San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Through the early part of the 2026-2027 season, Sengun is putting up 22.4 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 8.1 assists per game. The two-time All-Star has long drawn comparisons to three-time MVP Nikola Jokic because of the way he operates as a playmaking center, and that profile is starting to show up in the numbers.
What stands out most is how central he’s become to Houston’s offense. With Kevin Durant, Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr., and Fred VanVleet filling the other spots in the Rockets’ main starting group, Sengun has plenty of targets when he’s creating rather than finishing.
The Rockets have also opened the season near the top of the Western Conference at 7-2. Their loss to the Dallas Mavericks came with Sengun out because of lower back soreness, and he also logged a triple-double in the defeat to the Minnesota Timberwolves. In the rest of Houston’s games, he’s been one of the biggest reasons the team has stayed on track.
The bigger question now is how high his ceiling goes from here. The source of the buzz is clear: Wembanyama and Jokic are viewed as a level above the rest of the West’s centers, and Sengun still has work to do if he wants to enter that same tier.
Even so, the early production has put him in striking distance of broader recognition. A true MVP push would require another leap, but an All-NBA spot is very much in play if he keeps this up.
For Houston, that’s the kind of development a team wants from its centerpiece. Sengun is already leading the Rockets in multiple categories, and he’s looking more and more like the offensive engine the franchise can build around.
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The assignment did not last long. Thornton was back with the Rockets after the game, a reminder that Houston is still sorting through its backcourt depth while keeping tabs on one of its younger pieces. For a team that has been watching his development closely since taking him 31st overall in the 2026 NBA Draft, every brief stint like this feels like part of a larger evaluation. [Read more 🡒]
Jabari Smith Jr. Has To Stop Disappearing In Rockets Offense
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But the recent dip was a reminder of how much more there is to unlock. When Smith stops looking for his own shot, Houston loses one of the young pieces it needs most to develop into a dependable scoring option, and the offense can feel thinner for it. The Rockets do not need him to force the issue every night, but they do need the version of Smith who stays aggressive and makes opposing defenses pay attention. [Read more 🡒]
Dillon Brooks Just Gave Rockets Fans Another Reason To Hate This Matchup
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Brooks also made it clear he wants his response to land squarely on Durant, not in the usual vague, indirect NBA internet style. For Rockets fans, it is another reminder that this matchup comes with more than the usual playoff-style tension, especially with Brooks leaning into the moment and promising to meet Durants comments head-on. [Read more 🡒]