Houston Rockets Must UNLEASH HIM…
jabari Smith Jr is the most underrated player on the Rockets Remember he’s only 21 years old It really doesn’t feel like it Feels older to me considering he plays like a veteran And Draymond Green said the exact same thing after that series And in the playoffs he only played 20 minutes per game yet gave the Rockets consistent production seven points per game while shooting 50% from the field and 45% from three I appreciate that he was not afraid of the moment I’ve noticed over his short career he’s built for pressure shots and is willing to live with the results His best trait as a player in my eyes is making the game easier for those around him He can fit around any type of player with his skill set because teams respect his jumper He’s a willing shooter He can shoot it from anywhere on the perimeter whether it’s contested or heavily contested And considering his size he can shoot it over anyone pretty much So he doesn’t need a big advantage to get that shot off And then defensively he can guard multiple positions He rebounds at an elite level He tries hard on defense He’s a true double double threat every single night The perfect connective wing in the modern NBA He could play the three or fourth position And depending on the matchup if the other team goes small or his team wants to go small he can certainly play a few spot minutes at the five He just offers a ton of versatility for his team And moving forward the Rockets need to expand his role I feel like he’s gotten lost in the rotation to prioritize other development for their other young players He might not have star potential but he’s a tier below that tapping on that door I think he can be an Al Horford glue guy type on a championship team He won’t be the first option probably not even the second or third but he’s a guy who will make the game easier for the number one or number two on his team And more importantly he has the confidence and mindset to step up and rise in big moments to take the pressure off those star players So basically I’m saying he’s got star role player written all over him But also let’s be real he’s only 21 years old He works hard in the off season loves the game of basketball So who knows he might have even more potential than we realize The statistics also back this up During the regular season he played 1,716 minutes They were plus 250 in those minutes plus 7.1 net rating The defense was better with him on the floor The offense was a tad bit worse but not really Meanwhile with him off the floor in 2,240 minutes they were plus 120 plus 2.4 net rating So that dropped down a bit And also you see that defensive rating skyrocket up to 113.7 And then look at his production next to their best players Shenun and him were plus 231 throughout the regular season 1,200 plus minutes plus 8 net rating as well Next to Jaylen Green plus 4.4 net rating Next to Van Fleet plus 7.7 net rating Jabari Smith Amen Thompson were also a plus 10.7 net rating And then going to the playoffs their most successful lineup was Jabari Smith Stephen Adams Shenon Fred Van Fleet and Dylan Brooks That group had a plus 34.4 net rating So basically I think the Rockets need to seriously consider giving him a larger role giving him more freedom because he just fits perfectly next to anyone Overall he should be included in their offense more He’s a great postup player with how inconsistent their offense is There’s no reason in my opinion that they shouldn’t be looking for him against mismatches more often every now and again I’m not saying they should build their offense around that But considering so often their offense just kind of died out just give him a touch and see what he can do It turns out during the regular season postups he produced 1.26 points per possession only a 6.7 frequency percentage That’s very low but he was in the 91.7 percentile for postup points He shot 53.8% on step back jumpers 53.5% on fadeaways and 63.6% on turnaround jumpers during the regular season Considering their offense was built around Shingun and Jaylen Green no offense to them but they were both pretty inconsistent efficiency-wise Jabari Smith’s role offensively should be expanded a bit They should be looking to get him mismatches so he can just shoot over someone take a couple dribbles turnaround jumper that type of thing Obviously his handle limits him so I’m not saying do it every single possession but I do believe he should get more freedom and opportunity moving forward You also got to appreciate that he never complains puts his head down accepts his role no matter how many minutes he gets on a night-to-ight basis You’re always getting the same type of effort from him Definitely let me know your thoughts below though Am I overrating him do you think he’s good where he’s at or do you think the Rockets are potentially not using him as much as they should leave a like and subscribe It helps out the ALGO Thank you very much Have yourself a great day and peace out
Houston Rockets Breakdown & News
Social Media
Twitter- https://twitter.com/OfficialRomp
3 Comments
The Rockets need to nove him somewhere he can be a featured big man. I've been saying the rockets and pistons are perfect trade partners.
Rockets need to develop and get him on the court( rockets fan )
He's limited in what he can do offensively when he struggles dribbling the ball more than 2 times in a possession. He's an "in theory" player where his potential outweighs his actual game.