If a player claps for the ball, and doesn't get it, is he supposed to run up and yank the ball away like he was in middle school?
he is only 19, people need to remember this and not judge him as if he is 5 years in to his career. NBA is a lot different than college
He is not the only 19 year old to play in The NBA... Most of the top draft picks are 19 or 20, did not stop Paolo from showing early signs of stardom. Same for Cade and Mobley. Even Green's slow start last year had flashes.
Jabari can ask for the ball all he wants. There's no point passing to him anyway unless it is a catch and shoot opportunity. He can't create off the dribble for himself or others, why pass to him?
If the ball is moving and you have a true point guard Jabari could be used more strategically. Pick and pop and even cutting to the basket... posting up... high low... with Kevin Porter Jr and these young guys in general there's no consistent rhythm or flow to the offense. So now you look at Jabari and say he just stands outside the 3 point line and catch and shoot... he's limited ect... these Rockets are not playing the whole game though... the entire team is playing in a limited fashion.
Independent of roster changes, Jabari needs to hustle more. Secure all the defensive boards. Get some tap out to teammates for the second opportunity. Score some easy putbacks. It’ll help his confidence when his shots aren’t falling. I expected his D to be worse than advertised in the NBA because his body is nowhere near ready, but there is no reason to not hustle. Can learn a thing or two from Tari who legitimately should be starting over Jabari based on production.
Paolo has a ready made NBA body. Smith jnr has had a couple of good scoring games so far. People just need some patience
Gotta remember that EG is a shooting guard playing out of position at the SF spot .... He's guarding much taller players. Ingram is a long dude at 6'8" with a 7'3" wingspan .... EG's got no business being stuck on guys like that, even if he has done it in the past, it's a mismatch.
Smith needs significantly more time to develop, the reality is the Rockets have 5 players in the starting line up that command a fair amount of shots. The Rockets are playing 3 SGs, that's going to eat up most of the available shots. In the starting line-up, only 3 players have proven they deserve shots because they can make them consistently - Green, Gordon and Sengun. Ideally, the Rockets would want Gordon coming off the bench so a low usage player (KMJ/Eason) can come in and play the "glue guy" role. That means an offense that resolves around Green and Sengun, with KPJ, KMJ and Jabari playing around these two. The "shot takers" will be sufficiently staggered so that one of KPJ, EG or Green will be on the court at all times, but never having all 3 guys starting together.
Jabari isnt ready for pro sports and its harsh truth. Jalen wasnt either but has more talent. Jabari is a power player with no power right now, he is a big that is pushed around and his legs are too tired to hit open shots
Not to mention that A) the game is moving way too fast for him right now B) and that he has no idea where his shots are in this offense. C) Additionally, he hasn’t developed any sweet spots on the floor where he is the most efficient. D) His triple threat game is at a high school level right now E) plus he needs to get stronger as you mentioned. Jabari has a TON of potential but he may have the most work to do out of all the young guys to reach it.
Tbh this whole draft was very weak. Banchero and nothing and we still are waiting to see how Banchero plays once properly scouted
Technically he is losing to Chet who is 0-0 while Jabari is negative 33 and negative 14. That graphic is pretty damning of his play so far, really hope he gets it together .... One of the things I hate about the draft and tanking is that with these kids coming in so young now days it takes them 3-4 years to become NBA players and by that time they are on their second contract. If they are any good they are getting 25% cap max on that 2nd contract ... Easly draft picks are rarely value contracts on rookie deals or the large 2nd contracts. The Rockets are paying Jalen and Jabari north of $18m between them to win 20ish games & Green is extension eligible after next season when he'll surely be asking for his max which is 25% of the cap.
People here are saying that a lot to have some "it won't work in the playoffs" or "give opponents time to adjust" narrative, but it doesn't make a lot of sense imo. It's far easier to gameplan against someone like Green who relies on his shot and athleticism to drive, but Paolo for example is way more developed on offense in that he is a 6'10-6'11 guy who has a post arsenal, spin moves, good midrange (better than Jabari in college), an okay 3 and elite playmaking. So you can't just take one aspect of his game away on defense and shut him down that way. Take away his midrange or 3 with a pesky defender, he can still drive by or use post moves, create plays for teammates etc. Drop off doesn't work either due to his good shot. A versatile guy like Paolo is just much more unlikely to be figured out and easily gameplanned against in this league or a playoff series.
I hope he can quickly show his promise as a triple threat instead of a triple single player. I still have confidence in him in the next 2-3 years, but this is year might be a rough period of adjustment for him
Just. Make. Your. Open. Shots. And. Defend. Lost in the noise of having the Devil on the team is that Jabari looks infinitely worse than Jalen did. Almost as if all of his weaknesses have been magnified in the NBA and he cant even be relied upon to add his strengths since those too have now become weaknesses in particular this "lock down" defender we were promised. Its getting a little worrisome only because if fans are truly getting below the surface level his issues are not a byproduct of being "frozen" out by anyone.
He's clearly not confident right now. A couple of times he had a little guy on him and could have done an easy turnaround 15-footer, but he passed it back out. Not many people are gonna block his shot, he needs to learn that and shoot with confidence.
he just can't shoot. once he can start making a jumpshot then we will be singing his praises. when you sign a shooter, you expect him to make shots. anything less is a dissapointment.
