Fil-Am Jalen Green puts up 12 points in NBA preseason debut

Jalen Green drives against the defense of Bradley Beal and Daniel Gafford (usatoday.com)

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Filipino-American Jalen Green proved he could score at the NBA level after chipping in 12 points for the Houston Rockets.

Aside from scoring, Green also grabbed six rebounds and two assists in a 125-119 win against the Washington Wizards.

Coming in as a rookie, Green looked comfortable as soon as the game started as he wowed Houston with a couple of dazzling moves.

His first basket was impressive to say the least. Green attacked the interior and converted an acrobatic double-pump layup against the tough defense of Bradley Beal and Daniel Gafford.

Before finishing his lay-up, Green first shed Kyle Kuzma with a beautiful crossover that wowed the crowd.

Green also had another highlight after driving down the left baseline and finishing with a two-handed dunk.

Despite scoring double-digits in his first NBA preseason game, Green struggled from the field as he shot 4/14 from the field and vows to bounce back in their next game.

“I felt like I could have shot a little bit better. It didn’t fall tonight but it’s going to happen. I thought I was very aggressive, getting downhill and locking on defense, but I couldn’t hit shots today and like I said, it’s going to happen,” Green said.