Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. off to hot start in summer league play

Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. is putting in the work and looks poised to make a leap as he heads into his second NBA season.

The No. 3 pick in the 2022 draft capped his first summer league performance this season with a game-winning 3-pointer in a 100-99 victory over Portland on Friday, scoring 29 of his 33 points in the second half. He followed that by posting 38 points, seven rebounds and six assists on Sunday in a 113-101 win over Detroit.

Smith is showing variety at a high level, from hitting 3-pointers to rebounding to handling the ball at 6-foot-11.

“I think it shows that he's growing as a player, he's blossoming as a player." Rockets summer league coach Ben Sullivan said after the win over Detroit. "He has a lot of stuff that he's really good at, and he's putting it all together.”

The Rockets were thrilled when Smith, expected by many to go No. 1 overall in last year's draft, slipped to No. 3. He had a solid first season with 12.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game and made the All-Rookie second-team. However, the former Auburn star didn’t get a single vote for rookie of the year. Oklahoma City’s Jalen Williams, Utah’s Walker Kessler, Indiana’s Bennedict Mathurin, Sacramento’s Keegan Murray and Detroit’s Jaden Ivey all got rookie of the year votes, despite being drafted after Smith.

Smith immediately got back to work after the season and looks comfortable in the system of new coach Ime Udoka. He leads the summer league in free throws made and attempted per game.

“Learning a new offense, learning a new play style, new defensive coverages, new teammates, new faces on the bench — it’s just going out there getting reps," Smith said. "Playing in a different role and just having fun.”