Jabari Smith Jr., another “poison” in the Rockets’ attack

Amen Thompson sensed there was a chance to play at the low post but preferred to pass the ball to Steven Adams at the head of the racket. He made the same reading and did not hesitate to send the lobbed dog to Jabari Smith Jrand then defended by Immanuel Quickli.

With a good 20 centimeters of difference between the two, the duel seemed lost in advance for the Raptors player. Jabari Smith Jr. was able to catch the ball, put his foot down and climb into the circle. We do not count the number of actions of this type in a match where the size The Texans made the difference.

A difference of inches that Houston’s interior took full advantage of to finish the game with 25 points (8/16 shooting including 4/9 from distance), 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. It was the most productive game since the resumption of the regular season for the man who acted as lieutenant to Kevin Durant (31 points).

« I play with KD, I play with Alpi (Alperen Sengun). You have to pick your poison. It will be like this all year: teams take them in pairs, they can send two players on them, and we remain altruistic, make the right choice », notice the interior.

Jabari Smith Jr. thus benefits from the spaces created by others, and vice versa. In the first quarter, we saw him nudge the same Quickley into the post, before playing the leather to Alperen Senggun who was momentarily released by Scotty Barnes who came to the rescue. The Turk then crossed from a good meter behind the arc.

Good understanding with Sengun

In transition in the second half, he found his pivot again to go for a “trailer” dunk, after he himself was on the counterattack finish instead of serving to Kevin Durant. We will understand that in this match the 22-year-old showed a lot of confidence.

« His confidence, his aggressiveness, his understanding of favorable matchups… Teams try to hide certain players on defense on him, he makes them pay under the circle, in the post game, but by being ultra-aggressive on loose balls and going to the basket. Physically, he is more confident. We talked about how much he’s progressed in terms of power. That carries over to the match », livre son trainer Ime Udoka.

A sign that, after three years of statistical stagnation, an “explosion” is coming? And that, a few years after he experienced the depth of the league when he got to the big leagues.

« We’ve watched this team lose for most of the season, and now we’re in a position where we can be competitive. It’s up to us to bring that competitiveness every night. It’s an 82-game season, it’s not easy, and we try to push each other every night to keep the same energy, to be consistent ” says Jabari Smith Jr., specifically referring to Alperen Sengun.

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How to read statistics? MJ = matches played; Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / 3 points in an attempt; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive jump; Tot = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; Points = Points.