The Houston Rockets are going for it. They’re going to start the tallest lineup in NBA history.
There’s a legitimate world where the Rockets could play a lineup with one 6-foot-7 guy and another four who are 6-10 or 6-11, and they’ve opted to go with it on opening night.
ESPN’s Michael C. Wright shared this idea, with the five consisting of:
- 6-7 Amen Thompson
- 6-10 Jabari Smith Jr.
- 6-11 Kevin Durant
- 6-11 Alperen Sengun
- 6-11 Steven Adams
“We’re probably one of the biggest teams in the history of the league,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said, via Wright.
And then on Monday, Udoka told reporters that this is the lineup he’ll use on opening night against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
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Part of the reason the Rockets would end up with that lineup is the fact that Fred VanVleet is out for the season. The much smaller point guard would’ve been crucial to Houston’s plans this season.
They’ll need second-year guard Reed Sheppard to step up, and if he plays well, he’ll be on the floor a lot.
But even in this tall lineup, the Rockets have lots of playmaking.
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Thompson has point guard skills. So does Sengun. And then it’s never a bad idea to let KD have the basketball and go to work as a lead operator.
So the Rockets would be fine in this look. They play the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night in the season’s first game, and they play to break out the gigantic look right off the opening jump.
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