Jabari

Smith Jr.

Two games ago, it seemed like Smith had figured something out. It had been a disappointing start to the year, but he had a 28-point double-double with five 3-pointers. On Sunday, he only played 24 minutes in a blowout win, but he struggled in hist 25 minutes in this game. His numbers are down across the board from last season, as are his shooting percentages. Smith has the makings of great 9-cat player, but he simply hasn’t been good this season, and the emergence of Tari Eason isn’t encouraging for his value moving forward.

Simply put, Smith has not been good to start this season. This performance raised his field goal percentage to 41.5% and his 3-point percentage to 29.7%. This was only his second double-double of the season and his second 20-point game of the year. This was a new season-high for points and steals, and he tied his season-high for triples. This is the type of player that they need him to be, and the player that fantasy managers were hoping for when they drafted him. He’ll look to keep this going in Chicago on Sunday.

Ime Udoka said that Adams will still be limited to five minute stints, which allowed him to play 14 and 10 minutes in his two other appearances this season. He’ll be back in the lineup after missing their last game, but he won’t have much of a fantasy impact, aside from limiting Jabari Smith Jr.'s minutes at center.

Thirteen of Smith’s 18 shot attempts came from beyond the arc, with the third-year forward knocking down a season-high five. Having made two or fewer 3-pointers in his first five games, Smith entered Saturday shooting 28.6%. Given his role within the offense, the 3-point accuracy has a noticeable impact on Smith’s fantasy value.

After accounting for just eight points and five rebounds in Houston’s season-opening loss to Charlotte, Smith was far more impactful on Friday. He led all players with 16 rebounds, and fantasy managers will undoubtedly take the assist and blocked shot production. The key for Smith is consistency, which was sometimes tricky last season. When you’re effectively fourth in the pecking order on offense, the key is to provide value in other areas. Smith did that on Friday.

While Smith was one of six Rockets to score in double figures, this wasn’t the best finish to the season for the second-year forward. He was 2-of-10 from three, which weighed down the overall field-goal percentage, and the 15 points equaled his total from the Rockets’ games against Utah (Thursday) and Portland (Friday). Beginning the season with a Yahoo ADP of 92.1, Smith exceeded that number in 9-cat formats while ranking just outside the top 100 in 8-cat. Alperen Sengun’s absence from mid-March onward did not significantly boost Smith’s fantasy value, which was the expectation of many. Expecting another top-100 season from Smith in 2024-25 would be fair.

Smith Jr. finished behind only Fred VanVleet (37 points) for team lead in the scoring department, as he posted a strong final stat line. Smith Jr. has averaged fewer than 14 points per game but he’s been on a roll as a scorer as of late. Over his last games, the second-year man has averaged 18.7 points to go with 6.3 boards, 1.1 blocks and 3.0 triples.

The Rockets’ points leader on Thursday, Smith has scored at least 18 in three consecutive games. While Jalen Green and Amen Thompson consistently flourished after Alperen Sengun’s ankle injury, Smith performed well before enduring a two-game dip in production. He has bounced back since, providing 8th-round value in 9-cat formats over the past three weeks. Expected by fantasy managers to be a top 100 player before the season began, Smith has met those expectations ahead of Houston’s final six games.

Houston’s winning streak may have come to an end, but Smith was still able to turn in a solid performance. He had his highest scoring output since December and set a new season-high for 3-pointers, which also tied his career-high. After a few tough performances recently, this was an excellent bounce back game from him. Unfortunately, the rest of the starters struggled, which prevented them from getting a 12th straight win. They’ll look to start a new streak in Minnesota on Tuesday as they continue to fight for the final Play-In spot in the Western Conference.

Thompson has recorded a double-double in two straight and three of his last six games, providing 7th-round per-game value in 9-cat formats over the past two weeks. Rostered in 68% of Yahoo leagues, the rookie wing is worthy of consideration for shallow-league managers needing rebounding and defensive production. Jabari Smith Jr. has not seen his fantasy value increase as much as Thompson’s in the aftermath of Alperen Sengun’s ankle injury, but he has room to flourish as the starting center. Smith finished Friday’s win with 14 points, five rebounds, one assist, two steals, one block, and three 3-pointers in 33 minutes.