It is the first All-Star selection for Şengün, the 22-year-old center who over the last four seasons has helped to rebuild the Rockets into a playoff contender.

Alperen Şengün joined the Houston Rockets at the depths of their post-Harden rebuild in the 2021 NBA draft. The 22-year-old center is now an All-Star as Houston rises up the NBA hierarchy. Şengün’s been reaching new heights this season 🚀 Alperen Şengün is an #NBAAllStar! pic.twitter.com/GfTkVUlnKv

The Rockets currently hold second place in the Western Conference with a record of 32 wins and 14 losses, thanks in large part to Şengün’s contributions. His selection marks a historic milestone as he becomes only the second Turkish player in NBA history to earn an All-Star spot, following Mehmet Okur in 2007.

The Houston Rockets (32-14) go for a season sweep of the Memphis Grizzlies (31-16) on Thursday night in a nationally televised game at FedEx Forum, the fourth and final game in the regular-season series between the Western Conference rivals.

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."

Michael Shapiro is a sports reporter for Chron, covering the Astros, Rockets, Texans and every team in town. Michael is a Denver native and graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, and a noted fan of pull-up threes, wide-receiver passes and a good hot fudge sundae.

All-Star center Alperen Sengun (bruised calf) missed his first game of the season for the Rockets, who gave Steven Adams his first start.

Rockets star Alperen Sengun earned the first NBA All-Star selection of his career, only needing one word to react to the news.

Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun was selected as an All-Star reserve tonight on the NBA on TNT pregame show. Sengun, at 21 years old, joins seven other players on the Western Conference All-Star bench,