Jabari improved a lot, but there’s still more to work on.
This season was one of high significance for Jabari Smith Jr. With a potential contract extension looming, the former third overall pick needed a career year to prove to Houston his worth. However, a couple factors diminished Bari’s opportunity of having his best season, but that’s not to say he didn’t have a good year.
Sure, his numbers were down from the year prior, but his overall play was improved, as well as his defense. Not to mention, a midseason injury caused Jabari to miss over 20 games, not ideal for a 21-year-old trying to find his footing in the lineup. Even with the injury setback though, Smith was a big help to the Rockets becoming the two seed in the West, and as I’ll explain here, was an absolute positive for the team.
Smith appeared in 57 regular-season games, averaging 12.2 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.1 assists over 30 minutes a game. He posted shooting splits of 43.8% from the field, 35.4% from three-point range, and 82.5% from the free-throw line. These were statistically, a slight dip from his sophomore season, but injury and lower volume played a role in that. After starting in the first 33 games of the season for the Rockets, in early January, Smith suffered a fractured hand during practice that sidelined him for 21 games. Returning from the missed time, Smith slowly transitioned to a bench role, still providing valuable minutes, but only getting six starts of his next 24 games.
This would prove to be where he played best at. In 18 games off the bench, Smith would average about 13/8/1 on 49/37/82 splits. All of these showed notable improvement from when he was starting, as well as his defense, which got better towards the end of the year. A lot of the improved play can likely be tied back to the use of the double big lineup. At the three, Smith was virtually a pure floor spacer and mismatch hunter. His offense was elevated tons, as well as his defensive, showing his capabilities to guard the 3-5.
In the postseason, Smith’s role was slimmed down quite a bit, averaging just 7.4 points and 3.9 rebounds over 20 minutes a night. Notably, his shooting efficiency was very good, hitting 50.0% from the field and an impressive 45.5% from beyond the arc, but the ball just never seemed to end up in his hands when he was playing well. His playoff experience was one that could’ve been so much more had he been used correctly. The main issue however, was his turnovers and poor decision making. While he was playing very well when the ball left his hands for a shot, when he attempted creating for his own, at times the lack of playmaking ability for Jabari was clear as day.
Which leads me to discuss what needs to be worked on this offseason for the young Jabari Smith Jr. For starters, I think his ball-handling and shot creation is in need of refinement. As a 6’10 stretch forward, Smith can shoot over almost any defender, his issue is he just can’t create shots in a way that plays to his strengths. Improving on that could elevate his offense so much, which would be fantastic for Houston. Another improvement I think Smith should seek is his playmaking ability. We saw the struggle with this in the playoffs, and quite frankly, even just an assist or two more a game while keeping the same turnovers would be forward progress. But, an MPJ 2.0 archetype is not something that should be sought after, which is sometimes the vibes I get when I see Bari look off the open man.
However, as Smith enters his fourth NBA season, and a very important offseason, his development still remains promising in my eyes. With a potential contract extension on the horizon, Smith needs to make his best progress as a player over the summer, because if not, either a trade, or an underball contract is looming for the former third overall pick. Something that I doubt either party is interested in having a conversation about. So do I still believe in Jabari? Absolutely, and so should every Rockets fan. All the potential tools are there, it’s just about whether or not he can unlock them.