Alperen Şengün

Alperen Şengün — Biography

Alperen Şengün (born 25 July 2002 in Giresun) is a Turkish basketball player who plays center and power forward for the Houston Rockets of the NBA and is a key member of the Turkish national team. Discovered by Bandırma Basketbol Kulübü at age 13, he moved to Beşiktaş in 2020 after the club folded, and was named the youngest MVP in Turkish Super League history in the 2020-21 season. Selected 16th overall by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2021 NBA draft and traded to the Houston Rockets the same day, he quickly became one of the team's leading players.

Şengün has broken a string of youth records in the NBA, including youngest player with a 30-point, 10-rebound, 5-assist game, youngest center to record a triple-double, and youngest center to reach 1,000 career assists. His 45-point outing against the San Antonio Spurs in March 2024 surpassed Mehmet Okur's mark for the most points scored by a Turkish player in an NBA game. He was named to the NBA Cup All-Tournament Five in 2024 and became the first Turkish player with two NBA All-Star selections after making the team in both 2025 and 2026; he was also named to the Team of the Tournament after helping the Turkish national team win silver at EuroBasket 2025.