The Houston Rockets know they have a budding star in Alperen Sengun. It's time for pundits around the league to catch up. A recent pair of lists naming the top 10 big men in the NBA each left Sengun out.
Granted, that's just two people. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. Still, Rockets fans were outraged when both members of The Nerd Sesh podcast left Sengun off their lists.
What were they thinking?
Rockets' Alperen Sengun conspicuously absent from rankings
Let's take a look at each list before we cast dispersions.
Logan's Top 10 Centers
1. Nikola Jokic
2. Victor Wembanyama
3. Anthony Davis
4. Joel Embiid
5. Chet Holmgren
6. Bam Adebayo
7. Ivica Zubac
8. Karl-Anthony Towns
9. Rudy Gobert
10. Kristaps Porzingis
Caron's Top 10 Centers
1. Nikola Jokic
2. Anthony Davis
3. Victor Wembanyama
4. Joel Embiid
5. Chet Holmgren
6. Bam Adebayo
7. Karl-Anthony Towns
8. Domantas Sabonis
9. Ivica Zubac
10. Kristaps Porzingis
OK. In fairness, there's a lot of subjectivity in these lists. The margins between most of these players are exceedingly narrow. One could argue that the only player who's unambiguously better than Sengun on either of these lists is Jokic. Conversely, it could be said that the only player who's being egregiously ranked ahead of Sengun on either list is Porzingis.
The center position is deep. All of these guys are great. That said, the evidence suggests that Sengun belongs on any list of the top 10 big men in the NBA.
He likely belongs in the upper half of that list.
Rockets' Alperen Sengun is a top 10 big
In Box Plus/Minus (BPM), Sengun's 4.4 ranked 5th among NBA big men. The only players ahead of him were Jokic (13.3), Wembanyama (6.5), Davis (5.4), and Sabonis (5.2).
Interestingly, Sabonis was left off one of these lists as well. That speaks to a likely reason why Sengun isn't on this list. There's an understanding that center is the most important defensive position, so players like Holmgren, Adebayo, and Zubac get the nod. Here's the rub:
Sengun is not a defensive liability like Sabonis.
There's some archetype bias at play here. Sengun was an important contributor to the fourth-best defense in the NBA last year. It seems like the general perception of him is lagging behind the reality of him as a defender. Sengun's ability to hedge and recover helped the Rockets run a dominant zone defense in 2024-25.
So, here's where he belongs on a list of the league's Top 10 big men:
James' Top 10 Centers
1. Nikola Jokic
2. Victor Wembanyama
3. Anthony Davis
4. Alperen Sengun
5. Chet Holmgren
6. Joel Embiid
7. Ivica Zubac
8. Bam Adebayo
9. Rudy Gobert
10. Karl-Anthony Towns
Again, this is not an exact science.
Ranking Embiid at all requires a leap of faith. It operates under the assumption that he'll bounce back from injury and return to something close to his previous form. If he's back to full strength, he belongs at fourth, but he may never crack these lists again. I tried to split the difference.
One could argue for Holmgren over Sengun. He's outstanding. The fact that Holmgren can space the floor and protect the rim makes him a more portable player.
That said, you wouldn't run an offense through Holmgren. He's a third option offensively, and Sengun is a hub. Moreover, the defensive gap isn't as wide as the perception would hold. Yes, Holmgren is the better defender as a dominant rim protector, but given Sengun's newfound defensive role, it's fair to say the offensive gap is wider.
Otherwise, to reiterate, everyone is entitled to their opinion. Still, it feels strange to suggest that the best player on the Western Conference's second seed is not one of the 10 best players at his position.
In 2025-26, look for Sengun to prove the nerds wrong.