Pacers, Rockets dish on best and worst rookie advice: ‘Buy chains and jewelry’

It’s been nearly two decades since Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka got his first taste of the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers, but it didn’t take him long to recall advice that had been given as a rookie that stood out.

“Always be ready,” Udoka said before Houston’s 122-103 preseason win over the Indiana Pacers. “Always be prepared. You’ll never know when you’ll get thrown in there, especially in the preseason. So for those young guys to continue to watch the game and see the pace of the game, what’s happening out there, you’ll never know when you’ll get your opportunity. Be confident, have some fun but do what got you here — understanding your strengths and staying away from your weaknesses.”

Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore, drafted with the fourth and 20th picks in June’s draft, respectively, arrive in Houston with a different level of expectations than the previous iterations of rookie classes. There’s not an urgent need to throw them in and see if they survive as was the case with Jalen Green, Tari Eason, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Şengün. The Rockets are in a different phase of their rebuild, flanked by experienced veterans and a restructured coaching staff designed to instill order and winning basketball within the group.

In Houston’s first preseason exhibition, both rookies got on the floor and were able to show why the organization drafted them, as well as clear areas for their development. Thompson had a rough shooting night (1-of-9) but finished with seven points, nine rebounds, three assists and a steal in 21 minutes. Whitmore scored an efficient 21 points on 6-of-10 shooting to go along with four rebounds.

Both are exciting young talents who hope to have lengthy NBA careers. But to get there, they’ll need to listen to their coaches as well as advice from veteran players who have been in the league a lot longer. Some advice is better than others.

I asked as many players as I could on Tuesday evening for the best —and worst, if they chose to divulge — advice they got as a rookie. Here’s what they said:

Fred VanVleet, Year 8: Don’t be late. Don’t be late. It’s simple man, there’s no secrets to this s—. I would say just don’t be late.

Worst advice I got? I can’t say I had any, I had some good vets. Kyle Lowry, Demarre Carroll, Corey Joseph, Patrick Patterson, Jonas Valančiūnas. I had all good advice.

Jock Landale, Year 3: Maintain routine through the highs and lows. That’ll probably be it.

Tyrese Haliburton, Year 4: For me, when you get to the NBA, people get caught up in the lifestyle of stuff. Just put your head down and work. Everybody at the end of the day got money, so what separates people … the talent gap isn’t that big from one to two to three to f—— 30, 40. Just gotta put your head down and work — there’s no secret recipe to being great.

Alperen Şengün, Year 3: I didn’t know much English then, but Eric Gordon was talking to me all the time. When…