Jalen Green is hosting his own players-only minicamp this week. Is this the first step to becoming the leader the team needs? Green may not have been the Houston Rockets’ best player last season — that was undoubtedly Turkish sensation Alperen Sengun. But Green showed potential as a showcase talent in head coach Ime Udoka’s system in 2024. Assuming Green can carry that momentum into the 2024-25 season, the next step would be to establish himself as more than just a talent. He must establish himself as a leader now.

Jalen Green’s minicamp: a leadership course?

Host a player’s minicamp

The specific focus of Green’s minicamp this week isn’t entirely clear. Team cohesion? Player skills? Maybe there isn’t any. Either way, the young Rockets are getting a chance to work on their games in a team environment. That’s never a bad thing. Human wrecking ball Tari Eason seems to be further cementing his position as the in-house glue. Sengun is showing off his much-improved English skills.

“𝘋𝙡𝙥𝙞 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧! “𝘿𝙞𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙚?” –@TAR13ASON 😂

The battle at the halfway point continues! pic.twitter.com/LNcEs86y0R

— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) 12 August 2024

But what may be more important than anything else about this minicamp is that the host is Green. Could the most important thing the young team takes away from the practice be a new leader?

Next season, the Rockets won’t be able to rely as much on the reliable leadership of veteran lead guard Fred VanVleet. As good as VanVleet is, his risk-averse decision-making style and limited explosiveness put severe limits on his offensive power as a lead ball handler. Green could catapult the Rockets right through that ceiling.

Green’s Player of the Month period in March of last season featured many of the typical post-All-Star break uncertainties. Sengun was injured, the team’s record seemed uncompetitive, a new, uncharted lineup was being experimented with, and the schedule had drifted into a more forgiving phase.

The pride of a new dad

Back then, though, the conversation mostly revolved around one thing. Green had figured it out. More specifically, because he was now a father. The connection was certainly more attractive because of Green’s mentor in the backcourt. VanVleet’s shooting weakness with the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 playoffs seemed likely to force him out of the rotation. Raptors head coach Nick Nurse was heavily criticized for his decision to stick with him. But then, all of a sudden, it started to pay off. And that happened to happen right after VanVleet’s son was born.

There is a certain logic to this idea. The period surrounding the birth of a child is a life-changing, even life-defining experience. NBA players, like all men, obviously have it pretty easy compared to the women involved. But it still leaves its mark. Nervousness, uncertainty and anticipation – all in one screaming but nonetheless jubilant moment – give way to relief, pride and a sense of purpose that stays with you until you die. It really changes a man. While it may feel very silly to think about this change specifically in the context of his performance on the basketball court, there is probably some overlap.

What I’m saying is that Green is still a young man full of potential. He may not have shown much visible leadership skills in his career so far, but that doesn’t mean he can’t do so in the future.

Jalen Green is not the first Rocket to host a minicamp

Houston icon James Harden was still a young man himself when he first arrived in Texas. He had to develop into the leader he became. Harden’s leadership resume isn’t as lauded as LeBron James’, of course. But LeBron is one of the best leaders in sports since the great Bill Russell. Most of the truly greatest players were great leaders in their own way. Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant had their own ways of commanding the troops and commanding the utmost respect. Where Larry Bird went, the Boston Celtics followed.

Harden was never one of those things. But when Chris Paul, dubbed “the best leader in the NBA” by Charles Barkley, showed up in Houston, he subordinated himself to Harden. And that hierarchy nearly helped Houston win its third championship against perhaps the strongest NBA squad of all time. What was one thing Harden did? Like Jalen Green, he held minicamps just for players.

The last word

Green’s ongoing contract uncertainty could either help or hinder his quest for leadership next season. It could act as an understandable distraction, fuel resentment toward the organization or foster a spirit of unhealthy competition with co-star Sengun. On the other hand, if he can show he’s willing to put the uncertainty aside and focus on the game and the team, it could be a critical step in establishing his leadership skills. Green could finally prove to be the leader Houston needs.