Jabari Smith Jr. went through all the emotions during his rookie season

Drafted 3rd by the Rockets in 2022, the NBA debut of Jabari Smith Jr. didn’t quite turn out the way he had hoped. Graduated from Auburn University, and long announced as the first choice of the vintage, he had already been disappointed not to be called first by Adam Silver.

And his first months in the Great League were very complicated. With his light size, the heavyweights did not hesitate to dominate him in the interior sector while his outside shooting did not respond to the call. Result: he only shot 35% in his first month in the NBA. In his first 35 games, his marksmanship was problematic with 35% in catch-and-shoot, 39% on drives and 37% in dribbling. In addition, he was limited very quickly by ankle and wrist injuries. A real ordeal for the rookie…

“Did I feel the pressure of the expectations that were on me? Yes, without a doubt. It’s in my nature “ recognizes Jabari Smith Jr.. “Things go so fast when you’re a rookie. There’s a lot of expectations around you and you’re just trying to survive” adds his coach, Stephen Silas.

From a collective point of view, it was even worse with a roster full of young people, who do not defend. This is the recipe concocted in Texas, the Rockets starting the season with 2 wins for 12 losses.

“This league is so different from the university” explained Jabari Smith Jr. raising his hands. “It’s a completely different style of play”.

An encouraging end to the season

Recently, however, there has been a slight upturn on the Houston side, with five games won in March. Among them, prestigious successes against the Celtics and the Lakers.

During this period, Jabari Smith Jr. seemed much more liberated in his game. Over the month of March, his statistics are also much better with 15.3 points and 7.6 rebounds on average per game at 47.2% in shooting including 36.6% in 3 points. But we will especially remember this sublime “game winner” at 3-points against the Pelicans at the very last second, on March 17, which had allowed Houston to chain a third victory in a row.

“I just try to play freely. The pressure can affect you and I tried not to worry too much about it” says Jabari Smith Jr. “Coming to a team that needs your help, and that you want to help, when you feel like you’re not doing it, you can blame yourself. So I just had fun.”.

Stephen Silas has indicated that Jabari Smith Jr. is now much more vocal in practice. The rookie would have taken personally the statements of Draymond Green, who had underlined the lack of veterans in the group to support the coaching staff.

“He’s starting to understand how the NBA works. He’s getting shots, but his leadership is also starting to show.” bragged Stephen Silas. “If we have a 19-year-old player who is this mature and can become the leader of this group through his game and his personality, then we really have something”.