Rockets put trust in Jabari Smith Jr. ahead of showdown vs. Spurs
The Houston Rockets could address their need for a traditional point guard before the Feb. 5 trade deadline, a vacancy caused by the loss of veteran Fred VanVleet to a preseason knee injury.
The Rockets will hit the halfway point of their season on Tuesday when they host the San Antonio Spurs. Houston remains near the top of the Western Conference despite its roster shortcomings, a credit to their blend of exceptional rebounding and an efficient offense.
Against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday, Jabari Smith Jr. scored a season-high 32 points in a 119-110 home victory. Smith is behind Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun in the pecking order on offense, while Amen Thompson is third on the team in scoring behind Durant and Sengun and ahead of Smith, who is averaging 15.4 points per game.
Smith made a career-high seven 3-pointers and effectively filled the void resulting from an off-shooting night from Durant, who missed 13 of 18 shots, yet passed Dirk Nowitzki for sixth in NBA history in career scoring with his 18 points.
"When I'm making shots, we're a whole different team," Smith said.
Smith has labored this month, shooting only 31.7% over nine games before his outburst against the Pelicans. Statistically, it was an outlier performance, but the Rockets aren't unreasonable in expecting Smith to provide more consistent production than what they've received in January.
"We're going to continue to trust in him," Durant said of Smith. "When he's knocking down shots like this, we go to another level."
Durant found a means to contribute to the victory despite his wayward shooting, dishing out a team-high eight assists. Durant has produced six-plus assists five times this month, doing what he can to help run an offense that lacks an orchestrator in the most traditional sense.
"He plays the right way," Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. "He doesn't force it. He knows the doubles are going to come, and more often than not, he's going to make the right read and let guys make plays behind it. So, very unselfish as far as that."
Propelled by the brilliant shooting of Victor Wembanyama, the Spurs rolled to a 123-110 victory over the visiting Utah Jazz on Monday. Wembanyama, named an All-Star starter for the first time earlier on Monday, paired 33 points with 10 rebounds and hit a season-high seven 3-pointers.
Wembanyama, whose career high for 3-pointers is eight, connected on at least five 3-pointers for the third time this season. Part of the wonderment surrounding his game is perimeter shooting, so when Wembanyama connects as frequently as he did against the Jazz, questions abound as to why he doesn't strike from the perimeter with greater frequency.
"He has so many tools or weapons that we talk about, everybody wants to see them all the time," Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. "When he shoots too many 3s, they want him to run to the rim; when he needs to run the rim, why doesn't he shoot 3s? He's not getting enough free throws.
"It's just a balance, and he's going to continue to find that balance. And he's a great shooter, and sometimes it's going to be predicated on how the defense is guarding him, who's guarding him."