“Can’t see the forest for the trees” is a common English idiom used to describe most individuals who find themselves deeply involved in a situation that requires an extended amount of time to find a solution. The person gets so caught up in looking at the trees’ obstruction and forgets that a beautiful forest often sits right behind them.

Most Houston Rockets fans feel like they have been staring at the same trees for nearly two seasons, using a young core of players in their rebuilding efforts. They are currently on an 11-game losing streak heading into Friday’s game against the Denver Nuggets and have only won a combined 32 games out of the last 102 they have played.

Yet, if you take an honest close look at how they have played since the All-Star Break, one might catch a glimpse of some beautiful scenery behind those big trees. Before the break, the Rockets’ average margin of defeat in their last seven games was 19.7. Since play has resumed, Houston has cut that deficit to 6.75 points per game, including an overtime loss to the Utah Jazz in which they came back from double-digit deficits twice.

“We very rarely give up,” said Rockets head coach Stephen Silas after Wednesday’s loss to Utah. “Tonight, especially, they just fought and fought and found it. They just stayed with it and kept fighting. They got down and fought back. This team has a lot of fight, character, and grit, and we are learning.”

One contributing factor to the Rockets playing better basketball over the last month is the play of rookie guard Jalen Green who has averaged 17.7 points per game while shooting 46.4 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from three-point range in the last twelve games. He has also scored in double figures in 14 straight games after not reaching double digits in scoring in the previous three.

Green is becoming more comfortable on the court and has seen his minutes per game increase to an average of 34.3 in his last ten starts, including a season-high 47 minutes played against Utah Wednesday night.

“When it comes down to this, you just have to lock into your body and get what you need,” Green said after the game.

Another player that has taken on the challenge of making the Rockets a more competitive team down the stretch is center Christian Wood. He was the bright spot for Houston late in the fourth quarter of the overtime loss to the Jazz scoring 12 points in the final eight minutes, including the game-tying three-point basket with time expiring to tie the game. Before his late-game heroics, Wood did an outstanding job of finding open teammates after drawing double teams and kicking the ball to open shooters.

“Coach is happy,” said Wood, who had five assists on Wednesday. “He likes what I’m doing. He sees that I’m trying to make an effort and trying to find all these guys. I’m going to be the guy who makes the extra pass for my guys, especially when two guys are coming at me.”

Wood, 26, is averaging a double-double on the season with 17.7 points and 10.1 rebounds per game, but it has been his ability to stretch the defense with the three-point shooting that has opposing teams scrambling to adjust to get a defender on him from that range.

“Coach wants me to shoot them a lot, but I’m trying to make the right decisions, make the right plays, not so much look for my shot,” Wood said. “Not so much really looking to shoot a lot of threes. Just shoot it when I’m open or whatever the defense gives me.”

Houston (15-47) will travel to Denver (36-26) to take on the Nuggets on Friday before returning home to play the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.