JERSEY CITY, New Jersey – If there is one good thing about Filipinos aside from their well-known hospitality, it’s their resiliency.
Jalen Green, the Houston Rockets’ Filipino-American guard, exhibited that trait in rising above the adversities during his third season in the NBA.
Green led the Rockets’ March Madness, finishing 13-2, in the month to get within striking distance of the 10th-seed Golden State Warriors in the race for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference.
The Rockets are currently two games behind the Warriors with eight games each remaining for both teams. The Warriors are -5000 favorites to make it to the play-in tournament, while the Rockets are a long shot at +650 at DraftKings, the No. 2 rated sportsbook app on IL Betting.
The 22-year-old Green is behind the Rockets’ late play-in push, averaging 27.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists while shooting 49.2% from the field and 40.8% from the 3-point line in March.
Green’s sudden rise came on the heels of his early season struggles marked by frequent late-game benching.
“It’s all kudos to Jalen,” Ivey told the Houston Chronicle. “I’m just empowering him and encouraging him. He’s doing the work. At the end of the day, that’s a credit to his resiliency and determination. And not being in that situation before, facing adversity, sitting down at the end of games, not being in [the game] in defensive possessions, he took that personally. This is the result of that.”
During Green’s slump, the Rockets offered him to the Nets, along with multiple draft assets from the James Harden trade for Brooklyn Nets’ Mikal Bridges at the trade deadline in February, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The Nets rejected the Rockets’ offer.
Then Green took off.
The former No. 2 pick credited Ivey’s help in navigating this challenging season, his first under head coach Ime Udoka, who piloted the Boston Celtics to the 2022 NBA Finals with his demanding switching defense.
“He’s helped a lot,” Green told the Houston Chronicle of Ivey. “That’s someone I’m talking to on a daily basis, who I work out with in the morning and before games. He gave me more game, and he helped me with my confidence.
He’s very encouraging. He believes in his guys. He also tells the truth when I do something wrong. That’s what you need in a relationship.”
Ivey, a 10-year NBA veteran, has come a long way from just being Kevin Durant’s best friend and “best teammate” to one of the league’s top assistant coaches.
Ivey, 42, was in the Philippines last year when he coached the 2023 FIBA World Cup Cinderella team South Sudan to an Olympic berth. Now, he’s doing his magic with Green whose ascending play bodes well for the Rockets guard’s contract extension talks in the offseason.
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Alder Almo is a former senior sportswriter for Philstar.com and NBA.com Philippines. He is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and writes for the New York-based website Heavy.com.