Rockets' fourth-year center an icon in his home country, where Turkish fans and politicians support his career.

Amen Thompson had the clutch go-ahead bucket and Dillon Brooks made a franchise record-tying 10 3-pointers in the Rockets' win over the Celtics on Monday.

Nearing real stardom, Şengün reflects on Rockets' belief in him: "Whoever trusts me, or backs me up, I will take care of them all my life."

Nikola Jovic did the same on the road for Miami in Brooklyn, scoring 17 points with 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals in the Heat ‘s 106-97 road win against the Nets. His countryman Vasilije Micic scored 11 points and shared 4 assists in Charlotte’s 123-92 victory against New Orleans.

The Houston Rockets have made massive strides as a team on the defensive end of the floor, and that can be accredited to players like Amen Thompson and Dillon B

Alperen Şengün is a Turkish professional basketball player born on July 25, 2002, in Giresun, Turkey. He plays as a center for the Houston Rockets in the NBA and represents the Turkish national team.

The Boston Celtics learned the hard way on Monday. The Celtics and Rockets battled in a hard-fought game at Boston's TD Garden. In the end, Thompson sunk the Celtics with a last-second bucket to secure a 114-112 Rockets win.

With the Cavaliers down two points, Darius Garland, their potential All-Star guard and 90 percent free-throw shooter, sat alone at the line with the chance to give Cleveland the lead. Even if he failed to make all three free throws, Cleveland, via a Flagrant One on the Rockets, would have the ball with a chance to seal the game.

Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell combined for 72 points in the defeat, losing three in a row for the first time this season.

Alperen Şengün countered with a dunk on the other end to retake the lead for Houston, setting up Jayson Tatum for an answer on the other end. Tatum took a pass from Kristaps Porziņģis in a half-court set and drove past Thompson for a game-tying layup ...

I’ve got a lot of injuries from (his childhood) — like everywhere,” the 22-year-old Şengün said. “My arms. My knees. I have injuries and scars everywhere from climbing places. A car hit me —

Reserve announcements for the NBA's 2025 All-Star Game will be made next Thursday, Jan. 30, and Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka believes he should have two players in heavy consideration. In comments from Friday's team practice, Udoka pointed to Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun as players he views as worthy of the honor.