BBNBA: TyTy Washington continues to impress Houston coaching staff

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Hello, summer league fans! As expected, our guy TyTy Washington is making quite the impression around the Rockets program. Not even a week into summer league play, the former Wildcat guard is already turning heads — important ones, at that.

TyTy’s developing role in Houston

Houston’s summer league head coach Rick Higgins has been complimentary of Washington since his NBA debut — the one where he came off the bench for seven points, four rebounds and three assists. On Saturday, Washington continued that same success against Oklahoma City. With his Rockets trailing by one point with under a minute left in the game, Washington blew past the Thunder defense and threw up a floater to take the lead. They went on to win 90-88.

Following the game, Higgins had nothing but high praise for the rookie.

“Fantastic,” said Houston Rockets Summer League head coach Rick Higgins when I asked him about the play of @tytywashington3 in Saturday’s win over the Thunder “TyTy does everything we are trying to do to the best of his ability every second he is on the court.” #Rockets #Sarge pic.twitter.com/2D5kEkSiFA
— Houston Sports Insider (@BigSargeSportz) July 10, 2022

He backed it up, too. Washington’s gritty play was rewarded with a starting spot in Monday night’s match against the San Antonio Spurs. The former Kentucky Wildcat ended with eight points, two rebounds, four assists and three steals. Former foe and Auburn Tiger Jabari Smith had an impressive night for Houston as well, contributing 19 points and nine rebounds.

float game pure 🔥 pic.twitter.com/GYdqbswBdx
— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) July 12, 2022

In an interview with The Athletic published on Monday, Washington said that Higgins has been important in his development so far. “He’s pretty much telling me to be who I am. Be you, be the leader you are,” Washington said. But even more than that, Higgins encourages some fun while you’re figuring it all out. “Don’t get frustrated; this is just the summer,” Washington added.

Washington also mentioned his possible impact on defense. His 6-foot-9 wingspan and quickness make him a problem for his opponents — and he knows it. “I always took defense a little personal,” he said. “I give them enough space where I can still have a good closeout on them, but if they try to beat me to the rim, (I) wall up and use my length.”

Johnny Juzang heats up against Dallas

Former Wildcat and UCLA transfer Johnny Juzang faced some backlash after a disappointing debut on Saturday. Touted as one of the best shooters in his class, Juzang went just 1-of-6 from the field and didn’t hit a single 3-pointer (0-of-4).

He seemed to find his footing a little better Monday night, though. The rookie was perfect from the 3-point line, going 3-of-3. He ended with 11 points while grabbing five rebounds as well.