2.2-2! This is the difference between Amen and Harden. Shen Jing ranks 13th in the league in assists per game, which makes his transformation possible.

Due to the accidental injury of main point guard Fred VanVleet during the offseason, which ended the season, Houston Rockets head coach Udoka was forced to make Amen Thompson the starting point guard in the first game of the season. Their original plan was to gradually move Reed Shepard into the position, as they did in the opener. But after he hit just 3 of 11 shots in the game and seemed completely unable to create shooting space for himself and others, Udoka immediately changed his plan.

With a poor roster structure, the Rockets are letting one of the NBA's most promising talents play in an unfamiliar position. But the good news is that the Rockets achieved a record of 3 wins and 1 loss with Amen as the point guard. Although the sample size is not large, it is enough to give the Rockets management some encouragement.

A key statistic for controlling the ball on the outside is the turnover rate. If Amen, who is 2.03 meters tall, does not control the ball well, he will often be intercepted by smaller defenders. At the same time, if his passing and organizational skills are not up to standard, he will throw the ball to his opponent. But Amen is particularly good at controlling the ball. His assist-to-turnover ratio is as high as 2.2, even better than the two top ball handlers, Doncic (2.06) and Harden (2).

The following is the player assist-to-turnover rate ranking this season

Alperon-Shenjing 2.32

Amen Thomson 2.2

Luka-Doncic 2.06

James Harden 2

Of course, in today's game where the pace is generally faster, a high turnover rate does not necessarily mean that he is a bad organizer. For example, Doncic's usage rate is the highest in the league at 39.3%, so he will definitely lose the ball more frequently. In contrast, Amen Thompson's Rockets rely on Kevin Durant and Shen Jing to shoulder most of the offensive tasks. If he still loses a lot of balls under such circumstances, it is definitely a worrying sign. A large part of Amen's job is to carry the ball across half court, pass it to the two stars, and then lock down the opponent's best player on the defensive end, and so far, Amen has done a good job in the task assigned to him by Uduka.

Although Amen is not the best organizer, Shen Jing's ability to organize offense makes it possible for Amen to occupy the point guard position for a long time. The Turkish center is one of the most unique talents in the NBA. The Rockets' top assist player is Shen Jing, not Amen.

Shen Jing ranks 13th in the league in assists per game this season. Except for Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, who ranks first on this list, the players ahead of Shen Jing on this list are all outside players. In fact, Shen Jing is the core of the Rockets' current offense, and all the Rockets' offense runs through him. If Amen can continue to do what they are doing now, then Uduka can continue to put the ball in Shen Jing's hands as planned, and they can continue their current style of play.

Although Thompson's ability to share the ball and defend now is impressive, he is by no means the best choice when asked to be the team's point guard. His best role now is to pass the ball to Shen Jing, and then use his athletic ability to cut to the basket, while super scorers like Durant lurk on the outside. Shen Jing's ability as an organizer has saved the Rockets this season. Until they have a real point guard, the Rockets' offensive system will still revolve around him, and Amen will only act as a fake point guard.