After the Houston Rockets loss to the Golden State Warriors in last year’s seven game first round series Alperen Sengun made one definite statement that he needed to be better on the offensive end of the court.
“I think I improved my defense this season, but I have to work a lot more on my offense,” Sengun said. “I didn’t have a great year on offense. I was better last year, I would say.”
Sengun felt his defense had taken a significant step forward, but his offense had actually taken a step back in 2024-25. Coming into the NBA, most of the talk had been about Sengun’s already polished offensive game, especially around the basket, and his passing ability, which brought comparisons to another great passing big man, Nikola Jokic.
Sengun’s most significant weakness at the start of his career was on the defensive end of the court. That weakness led Ime Udoka to sometimes bench Sengun in the fourth quarter of his first year as head coach, going with a smaller lineup because he believed it was a better defensive lineup to finish out close games.
However, Sengun showed improvement on the defensive end so much so that in the following season Sengun would close out most games regardless of score. But as Sengun pointed out he did have a drop in his offensive production and overall shooting.
Sengun’s overall field goal percentage dropped from .537 in the prior season to just under fifty percent at .496. Sengun saw the most significant drop in his 3-point shooting. Throughout his young career, Sengun’s 3-point shooting had been his biggest weakness on offense.
Sengun’s rookie season saw the All-Star center shoot .248 from beyond the arc, as he spent most of the season coming off the bench. Even when he was in the game, the coaching staff at the time, led by Stephen Silas, dissuaded the big man from shooting from the outside.
Sengun’s 3-point shooting has been a roller coaster since then with improvement in year two and then a drop the next two seasons with the worse 3-point shooting season of his career happening last season.
After Sengun’s promise to improve on the offensive end following last season tough first round loss Sengun offense has improved across the board especially from 3-point range.
Alperen Sengun’s much improved 3-point shooting started with the Türkiye national team
Most players this offseason were taking part in individual workouts and taking time off to recharge their batteries before the start of training camp. Sengun, however, went right from the end of the NBA season to the start of his EuroBasket training.
Sengun set out to help Turkiye win its first-ever EuroBasket title. Throughout the EuroBasket tournament, Sengun showed he was one of the best players in the world as his Turkiye team kept winning, reaching the finals without losing a single game.
One area that stood out above all was Sengun’s improved shooting from deep. Even though 31.8 percent may not set the world on fire, it wasand improvment from his NBA season but the way Sengun shot the 3-pointer was different. In the past, Sengun would hesitate more times than not and pass up a wide-open shot or shoot as an afterthought.
Even though Türkiye would come up just short in its bid for a title, it was the national team’s most successful tournament in decades, and Sengun’s confidence was at an all-time high. That confidence has carried over into the NBA season, as Sengun is shooting from deep better than he ever has in his young career.
Sengun is shooting a blistering .459 percent from beyond the arc and it isn’t because of low volume. Sengun is also shooting a career high 3.4 attempts per game. Sengun is coming off a 4-6 effort in the Rockets win over the Portland Trailblazers and Rockets on SI asked the All Star center about his confidence from 3-point range and how EuroBasket played a part in his improvment.
Alperen Sengun was 4-6 from 3-point range tonight and is shooting a career high from beyond the arc.
I asked Sengun what has changed for him when it comes to his 3-point shooting.
“Workout all summer and test it on the national team. Ime give me that confidence Ergin Ataman… pic.twitter.com/Gnq1hjg6Nc
— Lachard Binkley (@BinkleyHoops) November 15, 2025
Sengun credited his Türkiye head coach Ergin Ataman and Udoka for instilling the confidence in him to take the open 3-point shot and now he is even shooting when he isn’t wide open which opens up his entire offensive game.
If Sengun can continue his great shooting from outside and combine it with his already elite around the basket game, he may be on his way to his first ever All NBA team selection.
