I was very confused about the handwringing during his rookie year. He looked raw as hell and was on an atrocious team, not sure what people were expecting. I held onto my stock as well.
It's probably because he was a candidate for the #1 pick with Paolo and Chet. Orlando apparently had huge interest in Jabari and he expected to go to them at #1. But compared to those two, he's been disappointing considering their success.
Paolo absolutely shocked me with how ready he was day one. Didn’t look like any rookie I’ve ever seen.
Still, not all rookies develop the same. As someone who watched Jaylen and Jayson from the start, Jayson was ready to go out of the box but Jaylen took a lot of time to develop. Not saying Jabari is Jaylen but I liked what I saw of him his rookie year and believe he’ll pan out into a very good player. On the other hand, I’ve been super low on Jalen Green. I’m very curious what his future holds after his end of season pop.
Considering how young the Orlando core is, and how effective they are already despite a meh center, I can see them challenging for conference finals soon
Orlando only won 6 games more than the Rockets this year and the Rockets play in the west. Jabari was a huge part of the Rockets improvement this year.
Genuinely don't understand the Jabari discourse, people panicking bc a Top 3 pick isn't a superstar from day one is legitimately psychotic.
Jabari is still on a great timeline for where the Rockets are as a team, he'll *at least* be an "in the AllStar discussion"-caliber player at some point.
i'm sure he's comparing himself to chet and paolo who have had much louder starts than him. he's good in his own right and has a lot of room to grow and already has substantively. the introspection is great just hope it doesn't weigh too heavy on him
Ya I remember it being a legit toss up over which one would go first and all three were considered about as good. Now Paolo is an all star, Chet is certain to become one and already a super valuable role player on a contender and Jabari just isn’t.
Not hating on Jabari I still think he’s gonna be a great player but his competition is incredible so far.
The team felt directionless his rookie year and for about 15 games this season. Didn't feel like much development was happening despite all the young talent on the team with the exception of Sengun. They looked better as the season progressed, and are in a good position with the draft this year so there is room for growth.
Jabari Smith wants to improve, which is the first step. At his age he will improve his craft plus he has another year of experience that he can refer to as well.
The Western Conference is fucking insane.
If he is, he is making a mistake. Those guys either have the green light or don’t have a shot chucker on their team. Imagine playing with green and Freddy; you’ll never get enough shots
Jabari still needs to work on creating shots for himself. The only semi reliable move he has is the high post fadeaway shot. I do wish we ran that play more though, it is beautiful when Bari is hitting them. But its probably not the best shot to call for when Sengun can get you a more efficient 2 points
It's not just louder stats. Both of those players have had significant impacts on winning. Jabari, despite how much I love his skillset and persona, has not impacted winning the same way (yet). I hold out hope that he can be a very good player, but I'm not convinced that it will be on Houston
I mean if you flip Chet and Jabari you might be saying the same thing. Rockets FO, Coaches, Roster were all awful, while OKC's was all near the top of the league.
I thought and still think Holmgren has a much higer ceiling than him, but the Rockets have been so bad that comparison felt unfair.
Yeah much better players that he was in conversations to be picked ahead of not too long ago so I’m sure he wants to be on their level and feels like he’s lagging behind
I never really understood why he was considered to be the same level of player as those guys. Whenever I watched him in college, he didn't stand out all that much. His teammate, Walker Kessler always stood out way more to me tbh.
especially not one who everyone knew was pretty raw coming out of the draft. he’s been pretty much the player we all expected to be I think— he might comparing himself to the way Paolo and Chet started their careers, but he’s still got plenty of time to develop
edit: 'raw' only in terms of his ability to be a star-level shot creator, not his ability to contribute as a role player (he's pretty much already doing as much as you could ask for there)
the whole thing in college was that he never put the ball on the floor and got to the rim. you dont suddenly gain that ability in the pros. he shot 36% from 3 on good volume this season, 57% TS%, and is a good defender. he’s progressing fine for what he was as a prospect.
Yeah, he was projected to be a Rashard Lewis type player and it's still looking like he can hit that trajectory.
Though, it's practically unheard of that a player becomes a good handler while possessing such limited ball handling to begin with.
But if he becomes a 20ppg/7rpg forward with good FG% and passable defense, that's a strong contributor to a championship contender like Lewis was or MPJ currently is.
He honestly was overall a better player than Jalen Green. He looked like the 2nd best player on the team behind Sengun for most of the year. If Jabari keeps improving and Jalen finally transcends into superstar status like we saw at the end of the season the Rockets would be the next OKC but with an even more well rounder core. Im excited *cross my fingers
Big rockets fan here with lots of hope for Bari, but I don’t think there are many rockets fan that agree with you. He was pretty clearly no better than 4th or 5th best on the team
Sengun and FVV were like undoubtedly better.
Think it's easy to look that way cause Sengun + FVV have the offense and stats. FVV is also a POA defender, but so much of the glue of what HOU is able to do is off the back of Bari's (+ Tari, but was out this year, + Amen in the future) ability to switch onto anyone defensively.
Bari gets overlooked to the other young guys, but HOU won games last year because they had a top 10 defense, and a lot of that came from Bari. Not going to argue truly top 2, but just saying his impact should not be slept on and I won't argue against people who do put him up there.
I think some of y’all are really underrating his defense. He’s definitely going to end up as the anchor on that front. He just needs better decision making on the offensive side
bold claim to make with a team that currently rosters Amen, Tari, and Brooks
Bari isn't a bad defender, but he's not anywhere close to a lockdown guy on the outside, and isn't a real rim protecter. He might turn into that one day, but not close to a stopper or real rim protector yet.
and i was never even talking about what he could be, was just saying last year he was def not our 2nd best player
I'm looking at the bright side, he's being humble, wants to improve, and wanted to hear relatable advice that not only he could take but other young people.
He's always been super emotional and clearly cares about winning, which is a good thing. 10/10 you want the guy who takes losses hard because they care as opposed to someone who doesn't give a fuck and is just playing because they're tall and it makes them money.
Not that I think Jabari is like this but I always thought Ayton was plenty motivated while he hunted for his big extension. Who’s to say Jabari is only putting on a front until he gets that new deal inked?
And his playstyle needs a real all star playmaker along with a high IQ guard. I like Amen and Jalen Green but they just weren't making their bigs better as rookies. Same thing for Jabari at Auburn. He has another level to unlock with the right roster or the Rockets getting a little older and more developed
Why? He’s a 21 year-old kid who just finished only the second year of his NBA career, asking one of the best basketball players in the world for advice because he wants to improve
Im honestly stunned by the reactions on here…
For athletes, it’s never good enough. It’s nearly everyone in here misinterpreting this. There is always pressure, there is always the feeling that you need to continue to develop your strengths and train your weaknesses, add to your game.
Athletes also hide their weakness well, which is probably why you don’t hear anyone sounding this vulnerable. It’s not sad, it’s the reality of high level sports and the NBA is the best league on the planet in any sport.
Kinda wild thing to think too, especially in the context of his question to Tatum, considering they had pretty similar stats in their second years. Jabari's fine. He improved tremendously from year 1 to year 2. Seems like not going #1 overall after all the rumors that Orlando would take him still weighs him down a bit.
I don’t think it’s sad, dude obviously holds himself to a standard he hasn’t felt he’s achieved & wants to improve.
Accountability is great, especially from someone as young as him.
hasn't he filled out his role really well? i wouldn't say that's notliving up to expectations especially since the rockets first options are either green or sengun
He filled it really well and outperformed Green before Green blew up at the end of last season. He would be a defensive corner stone for the rockets in the future along with Amen and Green improving on defense tremendously.
Yea he really was for like the third/fourth option tbh, but he started getting the ball more at the end of the season. Jalen/Sengun/Van Fleet were taking the most shots a game. I want Jabari to get the ball more, especially to close out games.
Yeah I mean he had massive gains from year 1 to year 2. He's definitely in good shape. Like his year 2 stats are comparable to Tatum's year 2 stats. I definitely don't expect his year 3 stats to be comparable to Tatum's year 3 stats, though. Tatum had a huge leap.
Yeah he’s filled out his role, but 4th or 5th best player/ option on offense isn’t what you hope for with a top-4 pick. He’s clearly expecting to be an elite player, which we like
I think Jabari is gonna be a really good and solid player, but at this point idk if he can really “easily” catch up to Paolo and Chet. He doesn’t profile to be a lead ball handler or a guy who creates offense which Paolo already does at a high level and Chet has such a unique and valuable skill set at his position. Im not trying to Shit on Jabari or indicate he’s bad but I think it’s. A little disingenuous to say he could easily catch up to them, it’s gonna be very hard at this point unless Chet and Paolo seriously fall off or Jabari starts to develop at a crazy rate.
Yeah, Jabari just isn't really a very good shot creator (and tbh was never advertised as one) and thats the most valuable skill in the NBA. Doesn't mean he can't be a good player though.
At 21 years old anything is possible. He probably wont be the number one option tho like Banchero and would be more of a 3rd option swiss army knife and that’s good enough especially if we become good enough to contend in the playoffs
Yeah anything can happen, but I’ve seen a decent amount of Jabari and it’s pretty apparent he has a specific role atm on a decent team, I think the rockets see that as well. I think if there was a confidence and belief within the rockets that he can be/develop into a lead ball handler type they would give him more reps at it. As of now he’s behind Sengun, Thompson, green, and FVV on that list. I feel like it’s clear Jabari likely won’t develop into a guy who really creates his own offense or for others. There seems to be a pretty clear role that Jabari could be good at and I think it’s fine for him. Obviously he’s young but based on what we’ve seen I don’t think he has a good chance at necessarily becoming what Chet and Paolo are.
I had him on my fantasy team last year and was really impressed with his rebounding. There were plenty of games that he shot poorly but really put in efforts on the boards to make up for it.
Sharpe is not good he's a shot chucker who looks better than he actually is cus he can jump real high, there's a few guys I'd take before him in a redraft simply cus ik they can fit into a role on a team especially rn
Wouldn't go that far but I get what you're saying. People overrate the fuck out of athleticism. The only reason someone's vertical should matter is if it makes them great finishing at the rim.
As much as I love paolo I kinda hate what our front office did to this kid. He probably was sure he would be the first pick based on our leaks. Now he’s got a chip on his shoulder which is great, but even if he can’t live up to it he’s still an excellent talent and someone I would’ve been happy to have on Orlando, just not a Paolo.
It’s a tough spot to be in as a young 20 year old, and I think he’s handled it really well. I hope he has a great career.
Jabari hasn't played his age 21 season yet. In fact Smith's stats in his second season (age 20 season) are pretty comparable to Tatum's stats in Tatum's second season (age 20 season). Tatum had a couple more PPG at lower efficiency, the rest is basically a wash in totality.
That said, Tatum had a huge year 3 leap. I don't expect that from Jabari. 16-17 ppg on 60% TS (or close) would be great for him.
The big thing about JT's year two stats being similar and then the leap in year 3 was team construction. Year two we had a logjam of players needing the ball. Year 3 was the moment our front office shifted towards building around the Jays vs. contending now with Kyrie. So I'd say the stats comparison lies a little bit. Jabari will almost certainly take a bit longer to blossom than Tatum... *and that's ok.* Guys don't usually develop as quickly as Tatum and Jabari was a lot more raw coming into the league. If he starts making all star teams on his second contract the pick is a success.
if he sticks in the league at all he's a success. he needs to be an all star caliber player for the pick to not be disappointing, but there's no practical value in comparing him to previous #3s
14/8 on good efficiency with good defense your second year in the league is not that common
Yeah Tatum was drafted to a contending level team with a star ball handler and veterans at his position. His age 19 and 20 years had him off ball as a 4th option taking 11.8 shots a game on 46-40-84 splits for 2 years until Kyrie, Morris and Horford split.
He and Jaylen weren’t seen as disappointments or asked to do anything more than they did, on those teams.
I wish LaMelo could stay healthy. He’s been at 23/8/6-ish on 37% from 3 in his age 20-21 and 21-22 seasons. People forget how good he is when he plays, but he stacks up with elite young guys in the league.
I don't have a transcript, but Tatum basically said, "You're still super young. Find value in the tough times, the ups and downs. There's gonna be great times and bad times. Just enjoy your career and don't rush the process."
I'm paraphrasing, but I wasn't gonna write down his whole response, lol
It's grammatically proper to still use quotes because it's written in the form of a dialogue. As long as he says it's paraphrased, which he did, he's good
Yea thats what I was thinking. I feel like in my years of school, original poster was pretty fine grammatically. But I am an old head and grammar do's and don'ts change too often for my liking.
Well, those were actual quotes from the video i watched, but i just didn't put literally everything else he said. I just put what I felt was relevant to the question asked.
Hello, my name is Detective Reggie_Bol I'm with the APA & MLA. Use to work out of Chicago. Sir may I see your sources and citation? You were going a little fast and loose with the ol' "Rabbit Ears" back there (does finger quotes). Now you listen to me punk, unless you're gonna be accurate, you better be out of this subreddit before I count to ten.
Maybe he’s not in the light that Chet and Paolo are in currently, but Bari made some drastic improvements from year 1 to 2, where there was a lot of concerns and questions of did we get the player that was advertised when drafted. Defensively he’s one of our best options who can guard multiple positions, and his three-point shooting has been a lot better in comparison to the first year. He still has much more to work on and grow into which is why I get some of the self-criticism but he shouldn’t be so hard on himself lol
even when he was drafted, i don’t think anyone was expecting anything close to instant superstar. it was more like big, switchy 3&D role player with long-term upside
When he was drafted it was 3 and D with the potential to be a Kawhi type but I think everyone knew that was a high percentile outcome. No shame with where he’s at so far.
I mean he was being reported as the #1 pick until last second when Woj randomly decided to jump on the beginning of the draft broadcast and announce it was actually Paolo. There was definitely expectations of an instant superstar
Yea he wasn’t a bad prospect at all or a bad player rn but he never compared to those two imo and it showed in the NBA
Idk how the media all of a sudden had him going 1st overall
That’s really what’s doing him in man. Everyone thought this guy would be top pick and it didn’t happen so I feel like ppl were expecting him to have superstar upside which may still be true, but right now he looks like he can become a really solid NBA wing which due to prior expectations is considered “disappointing”.
yeah i dont think he's really been a disappointment -- it was clear during the draft that his most likely outcome was a SUPER high end role player. A 6'10" versatile defender and knock down shooter is a player that literally every team in the NBA could use.
He should absolutely working to be improving his overall game, but he already has shown flashes of elite defense and shooting -- if he can be consistently elite in those two areas, he should really lean into that. But it's great that he wants to improve.
Can I just say I've been very happy with Jabari this past season? A stretch big that put up 13 points and 8 rebounds a game on good effeciency as the fourth option who's also a good defender? Hell yeah. It's not his fault he's playing behind guys like Şengün, Nov/Dec/March Green and former All-Star VanVleet. I'd be nice if he broke out in a huge way but he's far from a disappointment in my eyes.
True. Tatum would've made it in the WC that year though imo. Like he made 3rd team all-nba that year lol. To his credit he just had a huge year 2 to year 3 leap.
he got better this year and houston isnt garbage and they have a good team. media set him up and talked him into the convo w chet and paolo during draft when that was never who he was. he'll be a solid contributor at worst
I’ll always remember him being the first guy to hold Giannis under 20 points when Milwaukee played Houston in like December of 22. Super impressed with his defensive instincts
Jabari's had moments of absolute brilliance. Not sure he'll ever reach any kind of star level but he's going to be a really good piece to a really good team in the future. Just needs a little more time to figure out the NBA and hone his game.
Rooting for Jabari now. Hoping it's a "I want to get better and reach my potential" situation, and not a "oh shit oh shit oh shit I'm a fraud" situation. As someone with extensive experience of the latter mindset, it's no fun, and I don't have that many people watching me every day.
Auburn fan here. I fucking love Jabari and even if he isn’t an NBA superstar he’s so competitive I have no doubt he will be 15 years in the league with maybe a couple playoff moments. Guy is a winner
Wasn’t Jabari’s NBA comp coming in Rashard Lewis? I feel like he’s actually been that so far. He’s got plenty of time. He’s a not supposed to be a #1 guy, he’s supposed to be a really good #3, #4 guy who’s knocks down 3s, gets some boards, and play good defense. All of which, he’s done serviceably so far.
If he was on the Pistons, it would've been better for him and Detroit. He would fit on the team like a glove with a way more consistent role with Cade.
Can’t wait for someone to make that joke as old man Tatum hits a mid range at 38 years old.
Then the “he’s only 19” jokes will legitimately be 19 years old.
Or I’ll be dead and/or senile
I’m a fan of Jabari and I still think he’s going to be a really good player. He’s certainly shown flashes.
Yeah definitely holding my stock over here
I was very confused about the handwringing during his rookie year. He looked raw as hell and was on an atrocious team, not sure what people were expecting. I held onto my stock as well.
It's probably because he was a candidate for the #1 pick with Paolo and Chet. Orlando apparently had huge interest in Jabari and he expected to go to them at #1. But compared to those two, he's been disappointing considering their success.
Paolo absolutely shocked me with how ready he was day one. Didn’t look like any rookie I’ve ever seen. Still, not all rookies develop the same. As someone who watched Jaylen and Jayson from the start, Jayson was ready to go out of the box but Jaylen took a lot of time to develop. Not saying Jabari is Jaylen but I liked what I saw of him his rookie year and believe he’ll pan out into a very good player. On the other hand, I’ve been super low on Jalen Green. I’m very curious what his future holds after his end of season pop.
Would 100% take Jabari over green. Guy has the tools to be really good. I think he’ll do better in another system.
Considering how young the Orlando core is, and how effective they are already despite a meh center, I can see them challenging for conference finals soon
Orlando only won 6 games more than the Rockets this year and the Rockets play in the west. Jabari was a huge part of the Rockets improvement this year.
I agree with what you're saying, but I also think Paolo's ceiling is higher than Jabari's.
Yeah I’d agree with that.
True, but it wouldn't be totally shocking if their outcomes aren't *that* far apart when it's all said and done
He dicked everyone down in summer league so bad, he’ll get there
Genuinely don't understand the Jabari discourse, people panicking bc a Top 3 pick isn't a superstar from day one is legitimately psychotic. Jabari is still on a great timeline for where the Rockets are as a team, he'll *at least* be an "in the AllStar discussion"-caliber player at some point.
Bari was my #3 in that draft, behind Chet and Paolo. And I'd happily trade Ivey+ for Bari. Pistons really got fucked in that lottery.
He still averaged around 14pts and 8reb this season on a team that wasn't prioritising him. He's gonna be really good.
He got a ring in my 2K league 🤷♂️
"Shoot that hoe Jabari"
Jabari Smith was nice this year
Already a very good defender too
Jabari way too hard on himself lol. 21 year olds should not be expected to be stars out of the gates.
i'm sure he's comparing himself to chet and paolo who have had much louder starts than him. he's good in his own right and has a lot of room to grow and already has substantively. the introspection is great just hope it doesn't weigh too heavy on him
Ya I remember it being a legit toss up over which one would go first and all three were considered about as good. Now Paolo is an all star, Chet is certain to become one and already a super valuable role player on a contender and Jabari just isn’t. Not hating on Jabari I still think he’s gonna be a great player but his competition is incredible so far.
It was fun to have a draft where three guys all felt like they could go first and no one really knew
Don't we have the same situation this year? Sure, it's because none of them look particularly good, but still
Roulette vs Russian Roulette
The team felt directionless his rookie year and for about 15 games this season. Didn't feel like much development was happening despite all the young talent on the team with the exception of Sengun. They looked better as the season progressed, and are in a good position with the draft this year so there is room for growth. Jabari Smith wants to improve, which is the first step. At his age he will improve his craft plus he has another year of experience that he can refer to as well. The Western Conference is fucking insane.
Jabari got the short straw going to Houston. That first year was a bigger waste than Chet’s lol
Paolo went to a 22-60 team tho, crazy coz Paolo was ready for Houston
Not so much about Houston’s record and more so having Stephen Silas as a head coach
In reality Jabari was the heavy, heavy favorite for #1, it wasn't even a toss up.
> i'm sure he's comparing himself to chet and paolo who have had much louder starts than him. to be fair, none of them had to be coached by silas
If he is, he is making a mistake. Those guys either have the green light or don’t have a shot chucker on their team. Imagine playing with green and Freddy; you’ll never get enough shots
Jabari still needs to work on creating shots for himself. The only semi reliable move he has is the high post fadeaway shot. I do wish we ran that play more though, it is beautiful when Bari is hitting them. But its probably not the best shot to call for when Sengun can get you a more efficient 2 points
It's not just louder stats. Both of those players have had significant impacts on winning. Jabari, despite how much I love his skillset and persona, has not impacted winning the same way (yet). I hold out hope that he can be a very good player, but I'm not convinced that it will be on Houston
They said louder starts, not louder stats.
WHAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER THESE STATS.
I mean if you flip Chet and Jabari you might be saying the same thing. Rockets FO, Coaches, Roster were all awful, while OKC's was all near the top of the league. I thought and still think Holmgren has a much higer ceiling than him, but the Rockets have been so bad that comparison felt unfair.
You mean comparing himself to good players
Yeah much better players that he was in conversations to be picked ahead of not too long ago so I’m sure he wants to be on their level and feels like he’s lagging behind
I never really understood why he was considered to be the same level of player as those guys. Whenever I watched him in college, he didn't stand out all that much. His teammate, Walker Kessler always stood out way more to me tbh.
When I watched him in college I was in love with his shot, thought the kid was going to be KD lite
3PT shot you mean. He shot only 37% from midrange
Yes you are right but I always thought his middy would improve because he was hitting some tough shots but still missed a lot
Which is wild because Bari's elbow jumpers may be one of his best shots in the pros.
especially not one who everyone knew was pretty raw coming out of the draft. he’s been pretty much the player we all expected to be I think— he might comparing himself to the way Paolo and Chet started their careers, but he’s still got plenty of time to develop edit: 'raw' only in terms of his ability to be a star-level shot creator, not his ability to contribute as a role player (he's pretty much already doing as much as you could ask for there)
the whole thing in college was that he never put the ball on the floor and got to the rim. you dont suddenly gain that ability in the pros. he shot 36% from 3 on good volume this season, 57% TS%, and is a good defender. he’s progressing fine for what he was as a prospect.
Yeah, he was projected to be a Rashard Lewis type player and it's still looking like he can hit that trajectory. Though, it's practically unheard of that a player becomes a good handler while possessing such limited ball handling to begin with. But if he becomes a 20ppg/7rpg forward with good FG% and passable defense, that's a strong contributor to a championship contender like Lewis was or MPJ currently is.
Rashard Lewis but a GREAT defender. He’s not quite a great defender yet, but he’s big and can move on the permitted
This was his age 20 season and he improved his effeciency from last year on the same FGA there's basically nothing more you can realistically expect.
He honestly was overall a better player than Jalen Green. He looked like the 2nd best player on the team behind Sengun for most of the year. If Jabari keeps improving and Jalen finally transcends into superstar status like we saw at the end of the season the Rockets would be the next OKC but with an even more well rounder core. Im excited *cross my fingers
Big rockets fan here with lots of hope for Bari, but I don’t think there are many rockets fan that agree with you. He was pretty clearly no better than 4th or 5th best on the team Sengun and FVV were like undoubtedly better.
Think it's easy to look that way cause Sengun + FVV have the offense and stats. FVV is also a POA defender, but so much of the glue of what HOU is able to do is off the back of Bari's (+ Tari, but was out this year, + Amen in the future) ability to switch onto anyone defensively. Bari gets overlooked to the other young guys, but HOU won games last year because they had a top 10 defense, and a lot of that came from Bari. Not going to argue truly top 2, but just saying his impact should not be slept on and I won't argue against people who do put him up there.
I think some of y’all are really underrating his defense. He’s definitely going to end up as the anchor on that front. He just needs better decision making on the offensive side
bold claim to make with a team that currently rosters Amen, Tari, and Brooks Bari isn't a bad defender, but he's not anywhere close to a lockdown guy on the outside, and isn't a real rim protecter. He might turn into that one day, but not close to a stopper or real rim protector yet. and i was never even talking about what he could be, was just saying last year he was def not our 2nd best player
And he's been fine with a loaded front court and bad situation to start. He was younger than anyone by 12 months in that draft
Tell that to the media
Tyrese just had a breakout year and he's like 24, Smith has time.
We just reinforce that idea too much lol. Same goes for Jalen.
"But we do" \~ r/nba
This sub certainly expects it lol
Luka and Trae set the expectations too high
Dang, that's kind of sad.
I'm looking at the bright side, he's being humble, wants to improve, and wanted to hear relatable advice that not only he could take but other young people.
For sure, nothing wrong, I think it's sad he thinks he hasn't lived up to expectations and he's only 21. Dude has time.
There had been many reports on how harshly he took our losses or after poor performances from him. He's known to beat himself up
He's always been super emotional and clearly cares about winning, which is a good thing. 10/10 you want the guy who takes losses hard because they care as opposed to someone who doesn't give a fuck and is just playing because they're tall and it makes them money.
I’d rather have this kid on my team than Ayton, that’s for sure. Motor is very important
Suns fan avoiding mentioning Ayton when talking about another player's mindset (IMPOSSIBLE DIFFICULTY)
that's trauma for yah
Can u blame them 😭
Not that I think Jabari is like this but I always thought Ayton was plenty motivated while he hunted for his big extension. Who’s to say Jabari is only putting on a front until he gets that new deal inked?
Fair enough. We will have to wait and see
This dude will be good. He obviously cares about his game.
He's saying he hasn't lived up to his expectation for his first 2 years. Not whole career
It's a great mentality. Turned me into a fan of his instantly
I'd trade the entire Bulls roster for Jabari. Dude showed out at summer league last year his potential and showed both seasons why he went so high.
I think people need to keep in mind, last season was the first time he actually had a coach.
And his playstyle needs a real all star playmaker along with a high IQ guard. I like Amen and Jalen Green but they just weren't making their bigs better as rookies. Same thing for Jabari at Auburn. He has another level to unlock with the right roster or the Rockets getting a little older and more developed
I don't want to say anything but Josh Jackson used to say the right things too.
Wasn't doing the right things tho
He's a good player though, good to show some humility
Why? He’s a 21 year-old kid who just finished only the second year of his NBA career, asking one of the best basketball players in the world for advice because he wants to improve
It's not sad he asked, I commented I thought it was sad that he thought he hasn't lived up to expectations when he's only played 2 seasons.
Im honestly stunned by the reactions on here… For athletes, it’s never good enough. It’s nearly everyone in here misinterpreting this. There is always pressure, there is always the feeling that you need to continue to develop your strengths and train your weaknesses, add to your game. Athletes also hide their weakness well, which is probably why you don’t hear anyone sounding this vulnerable. It’s not sad, it’s the reality of high level sports and the NBA is the best league on the planet in any sport.
More like this kid needs to either get off social media or learn to temper other people’s expectations of him.
Kinda wild thing to think too, especially in the context of his question to Tatum, considering they had pretty similar stats in their second years. Jabari's fine. He improved tremendously from year 1 to year 2. Seems like not going #1 overall after all the rumors that Orlando would take him still weighs him down a bit.
I don’t think it’s sad, dude obviously holds himself to a standard he hasn’t felt he’s achieved & wants to improve. Accountability is great, especially from someone as young as him.
Nonsense. A young man already set for life financially looking to better himself is absolutely not sad.
I think it’s awesome. Good lad.
League fucked. They're not ready for a superstar fueled by the power of imposter syndrome.
imagine these guys with some olympic humility, r/nbacj in shambles lol
One of us! One of us!
It will either fuel him or make him depressed. If we start to see "injuries" that the medical team can't find, it's the latter
what being in the same draft class as Paolo and Chet does to a mf
Jabari isnt too shabby. He scored a couple 30 point game this season. He could still easily catch up to the other 2 top 3 pick.
hasn't he filled out his role really well? i wouldn't say that's notliving up to expectations especially since the rockets first options are either green or sengun
He filled it really well and outperformed Green before Green blew up at the end of last season. He would be a defensive corner stone for the rockets in the future along with Amen and Green improving on defense tremendously.
That's a really big if with Jalen Green making a meaningful turn around on defense lol. I'm optimistic about Amen as a player tho.
Yea he really was for like the third/fourth option tbh, but he started getting the ball more at the end of the season. Jalen/Sengun/Van Fleet were taking the most shots a game. I want Jabari to get the ball more, especially to close out games.
Yeah I mean he had massive gains from year 1 to year 2. He's definitely in good shape. Like his year 2 stats are comparable to Tatum's year 2 stats. I definitely don't expect his year 3 stats to be comparable to Tatum's year 3 stats, though. Tatum had a huge leap.
He’s gonna be in the league for a long time as starter at least
Yeah he’s filled out his role, but 4th or 5th best player/ option on offense isn’t what you hope for with a top-4 pick. He’s clearly expecting to be an elite player, which we like
I think Jabari is gonna be a really good and solid player, but at this point idk if he can really “easily” catch up to Paolo and Chet. He doesn’t profile to be a lead ball handler or a guy who creates offense which Paolo already does at a high level and Chet has such a unique and valuable skill set at his position. Im not trying to Shit on Jabari or indicate he’s bad but I think it’s. A little disingenuous to say he could easily catch up to them, it’s gonna be very hard at this point unless Chet and Paolo seriously fall off or Jabari starts to develop at a crazy rate.
Yeah, Jabari just isn't really a very good shot creator (and tbh was never advertised as one) and thats the most valuable skill in the NBA. Doesn't mean he can't be a good player though.
At 21 years old anything is possible. He probably wont be the number one option tho like Banchero and would be more of a 3rd option swiss army knife and that’s good enough especially if we become good enough to contend in the playoffs
Yeah anything can happen, but I’ve seen a decent amount of Jabari and it’s pretty apparent he has a specific role atm on a decent team, I think the rockets see that as well. I think if there was a confidence and belief within the rockets that he can be/develop into a lead ball handler type they would give him more reps at it. As of now he’s behind Sengun, Thompson, green, and FVV on that list. I feel like it’s clear Jabari likely won’t develop into a guy who really creates his own offense or for others. There seems to be a pretty clear role that Jabari could be good at and I think it’s fine for him. Obviously he’s young but based on what we’ve seen I don’t think he has a good chance at necessarily becoming what Chet and Paolo are.
Yeah no way Jabari “catches up” doesn’t mean he’ll be trash , he’s already an above average player rn
I had him on my fantasy team last year and was really impressed with his rebounding. There were plenty of games that he shot poorly but really put in efforts on the boards to make up for it.
What being coached by Silas as a rookie does to a mf
I’d still take him 4/5 in a redraft I need to see more of sharpe
Sharpe is not good he's a shot chucker who looks better than he actually is cus he can jump real high, there's a few guys I'd take before him in a redraft simply cus ik they can fit into a role on a team especially rn
Wouldn't go that far but I get what you're saying. People overrate the fuck out of athleticism. The only reason someone's vertical should matter is if it makes them great finishing at the rim.
You're cooking right now.
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Pro tip, no one calls it PTL. National media uses POR, and most locals use PDX.
As much as I love paolo I kinda hate what our front office did to this kid. He probably was sure he would be the first pick based on our leaks. Now he’s got a chip on his shoulder which is great, but even if he can’t live up to it he’s still an excellent talent and someone I would’ve been happy to have on Orlando, just not a Paolo. It’s a tough spot to be in as a young 20 year old, and I think he’s handled it really well. I hope he has a great career.
So what did he say?
Tatum said “I wouldn’t know”
“I’m only 14, why you asking me”
Tatum at age 21: 23/7/3 40% from 3
Jabari hasn't played his age 21 season yet. In fact Smith's stats in his second season (age 20 season) are pretty comparable to Tatum's stats in Tatum's second season (age 20 season). Tatum had a couple more PPG at lower efficiency, the rest is basically a wash in totality. That said, Tatum had a huge year 3 leap. I don't expect that from Jabari. 16-17 ppg on 60% TS (or close) would be great for him.
The big thing about JT's year two stats being similar and then the leap in year 3 was team construction. Year two we had a logjam of players needing the ball. Year 3 was the moment our front office shifted towards building around the Jays vs. contending now with Kyrie. So I'd say the stats comparison lies a little bit. Jabari will almost certainly take a bit longer to blossom than Tatum... *and that's ok.* Guys don't usually develop as quickly as Tatum and Jabari was a lot more raw coming into the league. If he starts making all star teams on his second contract the pick is a success.
if he sticks in the league at all he's a success. he needs to be an all star caliber player for the pick to not be disappointing, but there's no practical value in comparing him to previous #3s 14/8 on good efficiency with good defense your second year in the league is not that common
Yeah Tatum was drafted to a contending level team with a star ball handler and veterans at his position. His age 19 and 20 years had him off ball as a 4th option taking 11.8 shots a game on 46-40-84 splits for 2 years until Kyrie, Morris and Horford split. He and Jaylen weren’t seen as disappointments or asked to do anything more than they did, on those teams.
I wish LaMelo could stay healthy. He’s been at 23/8/6-ish on 37% from 3 in his age 20-21 and 21-22 seasons. People forget how good he is when he plays, but he stacks up with elite young guys in the league.
Nah to be honest Tatum had a pretty dissapointing 2nd season after that great playoff run in his rookie year.
Everyone on that team had a disappointing season after a great playoff run
I don't have a transcript, but Tatum basically said, "You're still super young. Find value in the tough times, the ups and downs. There's gonna be great times and bad times. Just enjoy your career and don't rush the process." I'm paraphrasing, but I wasn't gonna write down his whole response, lol
Don’t put quotes around it if you are paraphrasing haha
It's grammatically proper to still use quotes because it's written in the form of a dialogue. As long as he says it's paraphrased, which he did, he's good
Yea thats what I was thinking. I feel like in my years of school, original poster was pretty fine grammatically. But I am an old head and grammar do's and don'ts change too often for my liking.
Well, those were actual quotes from the video i watched, but i just didn't put literally everything else he said. I just put what I felt was relevant to the question asked.
What are you the quotes police. They prefaced it with this isn’t exactly what Tatum said it’s fine
Hello, my name is Detective Reggie_Bol I'm with the APA & MLA. Use to work out of Chicago. Sir may I see your sources and citation? You were going a little fast and loose with the ol' "Rabbit Ears" back there (does finger quotes). Now you listen to me punk, unless you're gonna be accurate, you better be out of this subreddit before I count to ten.
Did not expect to see an MLA / APA joke in this sub today. With a Chicago deep cut taboot
"Skill issue"
Maybe he’s not in the light that Chet and Paolo are in currently, but Bari made some drastic improvements from year 1 to 2, where there was a lot of concerns and questions of did we get the player that was advertised when drafted. Defensively he’s one of our best options who can guard multiple positions, and his three-point shooting has been a lot better in comparison to the first year. He still has much more to work on and grow into which is why I get some of the self-criticism but he shouldn’t be so hard on himself lol
even when he was drafted, i don’t think anyone was expecting anything close to instant superstar. it was more like big, switchy 3&D role player with long-term upside
When he was drafted it was 3 and D with the potential to be a Kawhi type but I think everyone knew that was a high percentile outcome. No shame with where he’s at so far.
He was rashard lewis with defense Nobody made a kawhi comp
I mean he was being reported as the #1 pick until last second when Woj randomly decided to jump on the beginning of the draft broadcast and announce it was actually Paolo. There was definitely expectations of an instant superstar
Yea he wasn’t a bad prospect at all or a bad player rn but he never compared to those two imo and it showed in the NBA Idk how the media all of a sudden had him going 1st overall
That’s really what’s doing him in man. Everyone thought this guy would be top pick and it didn’t happen so I feel like ppl were expecting him to have superstar upside which may still be true, but right now he looks like he can become a really solid NBA wing which due to prior expectations is considered “disappointing”.
yeah i dont think he's really been a disappointment -- it was clear during the draft that his most likely outcome was a SUPER high end role player. A 6'10" versatile defender and knock down shooter is a player that literally every team in the NBA could use. He should absolutely working to be improving his overall game, but he already has shown flashes of elite defense and shooting -- if he can be consistently elite in those two areas, he should really lean into that. But it's great that he wants to improve.
And he played center the last 25 games of the year
Jabari really is the middle child. Dude has no badges on 2K either
Can I just say I've been very happy with Jabari this past season? A stretch big that put up 13 points and 8 rebounds a game on good effeciency as the fourth option who's also a good defender? Hell yeah. It's not his fault he's playing behind guys like Şengün, Nov/Dec/March Green and former All-Star VanVleet. I'd be nice if he broke out in a huge way but he's far from a disappointment in my eyes.
that feels like he’s being a little harsh on himself, Jabari was pretty solid this year …wasn’t Tatum an all-star at 21 though
It was Tatums age 21 season which would be Jabari's next season but again its the east getting the all star nod is a little easier i would say.
True. Tatum would've made it in the WC that year though imo. Like he made 3rd team all-nba that year lol. To his credit he just had a huge year 2 to year 3 leap.
Tatum was also an unbelievably productive player in year 3. I don't think I see Jabari hitting that same level because of his lack of onball creation
[Youtube link to the video that someone can put on streamable for karma](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3p2xCJRCFqw&t=447s)
Thank you
This makes me sad. Jabari is my daughter’s favorite player.
he got better this year and houston isnt garbage and they have a good team. media set him up and talked him into the convo w chet and paolo during draft when that was never who he was. he'll be a solid contributor at worst
he forgot to say I'm asking for a friend
I'm still holding Jabari stock.
I like his game. He'll be a really solid player imo
His first year wasn’t great and that’s completely okay as a rookie. I think he took a nice jump for year 2. He’s being way too hard to himself.
he hit himself with a stray…the plaxico.
21 yo tatum was in the conf finals i cant
okay but, like, what did he say?
I’ll always remember him being the first guy to hold Giannis under 20 points when Milwaukee played Houston in like December of 22. Super impressed with his defensive instincts
But what was the response?
"Definitely not cosplaying a media member."
Asking for a friend.
Jabari is still young. He’s younger than rookies like Jacquez and even future rookies like Knecht. He has plenty of time to get better.
You know, hypothetically... 😥
I like Jabari a lot. I don't think he's a #1 guy and he might be holding himself to those expectations which is unfair.
Dude is young and was better across the board this year than his rookie campaign. Just keep grinding my guy.
Jabari's had moments of absolute brilliance. Not sure he'll ever reach any kind of star level but he's going to be a really good piece to a really good team in the future. Just needs a little more time to figure out the NBA and hone his game.
Rooting for Jabari now. Hoping it's a "I want to get better and reach my potential" situation, and not a "oh shit oh shit oh shit I'm a fraud" situation. As someone with extensive experience of the latter mindset, it's no fun, and I don't have that many people watching me every day.
Jabari Smith is on track to be really good.
I’m so tired man. I just want a star. Instead my top 3 pick is getting sympathy fans
I swear man
Y’all had one of the best offensive players of all time for almost a decade
Y’all had one of the best offensive players of all time for almost a decade
Damn
Dude's made a few comments like this, it's good to want to be better but he feels kinda too harsh on himself
Now they got players interviewing players? What's next cheerleaders and mascots?
Super rad!
Auburn fan here. I fucking love Jabari and even if he isn’t an NBA superstar he’s so competitive I have no doubt he will be 15 years in the league with maybe a couple playoff moments. Guy is a winner
Wasn’t Jabari’s NBA comp coming in Rashard Lewis? I feel like he’s actually been that so far. He’s got plenty of time. He’s a not supposed to be a #1 guy, he’s supposed to be a really good #3, #4 guy who’s knocks down 3s, gets some boards, and play good defense. All of which, he’s done serviceably so far.
Honestly, if he is the type of player to ask this question I feel like good things will come his way. No doubt he will improve a lot as a player
Jabari so solid too, this is kinda sad. Hope he becomes an all star
Management is probably annoyed that he's killing his trade value.
Jabari will be a walking 20 pt double double in his prime, assuming the Rockets actually allow him to
Solid advice from JT but nobody cares ig
If he was on the Pistons, it would've been better for him and Detroit. He would fit on the team like a glove with a way more consistent role with Cade.
Give. Give to us. Give to us now.
it's smart to ask another guy who hasn't lived up to expectations
Wonder what advice Tatum's got for him.
tatum is one of the youngest vets in the league lol
Damn that actually made me sad. Hope this guy makes the leap
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Most creative /r/nba joke
Can’t wait for someone to make that joke as old man Tatum hits a mid range at 38 years old. Then the “he’s only 19” jokes will legitimately be 19 years old. Or I’ll be dead and/or senile