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Jabari Smith Jr. is the Rockets' franchise player

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by Houston77, Jul 7, 2023.

  1. Easy

    Easy Boban Only Fan
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    Well, Embiid is in the East. We aren't going to play them in the playoffs. :cool:
     
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  2. zeeshan2

    zeeshan2 Member

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    Older post but

     
  3. Stephen_A

    Stephen_A Member

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    interesting. These drills focused on quick moves and getting in position to shoot quickly. I like the dribble transition to pullup shot. He def needs to be quicker in this.
     
  4. cmlmel77

    cmlmel77 Up all Night Watching Houston Sports
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    We have to play someone in the Finals.
     
  5. Mathloom

    Mathloom Shameless Optimist

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    It sometimes feels like Jabari should be lifting weights and working on his 3PT shot but instead he’s obsessed with working on his agility and his dribbling skills.

    Feels like it’s very personal with him to develop SF skills. Honestly though the easier path right now is to get yourself close to 40% 3PT shooting with more muscle and build your game full of counter moves around that - including mid range game, drives to the basket, hook shots, drop steps and eurosteps.

    I feel like he’ll figure it out this summer. One more good jump in 3PT shooting completely changes the trajectory of his career. Keep building efficiency, range and volume slowly. His net impact would be crazy high.
     
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  6. chef0010

    chef0010 Member

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    No he’s not.

    elite role player ceiling.
     
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  7. Imanimal

    Imanimal Member

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    Not a star, not a bum. Adaquate power forward who needs to put on some mass.
     
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  8. A_3PO

    A_3PO Member

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    I disagree. Improving his dribbling and agility would make Jabari more of a complete player and could considerably raise his ceiling. That said, he better eliminate the jitters and overthinking and improve his 3-point reliability too. I’m certain he works hard on his 3-point shooting but in scrimmages you see in videos, he works on his biggest weaknesses against live competition.

    I’m starting to have doubts Jabari will gain much weight soon. IMO, it’s not the most important thing.
     
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  9. Easy

    Easy Boban Only Fan
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    Not sure about weight. But Jabari needs strength if he is to be a good interior defender. He is too easily bullied by stronger guys now.

    There is a sense that he is a tweener, not agile enough to be a wing and not strong enough to be a big. Personally, I think it's easier for him to gain strength than agility.

    I am not worried about his shooting. He has been practicing shooting his whole life and he has the shooter's touch. As you said, he just needs to overcome the mental jitters.
     
  10. TheBeastSystem

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    don't want jabari to gain weight
    just core strength
    and work on being even quicker
     
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  11. Tom Bombadillo

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    With U.S. coaches saying he looks like a 3, and complimenting his ability to get through screens and play off the ball, I wonder If we will see Udoka fall back on his Timelord habits.

    Jabari’s ability to play some SF allows you to use DB/Amen/Tari/Jabari interchangeably.

    Any athletic, rim protecting forwards out there that might give Udoka that old Boston look?

    3. Jabari
    4. Timelord-type
    5. Alperen

    Would be a nice change of pace to go massive at times.
     
  12. cheke64

    cheke64 Member

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    Lol the USA coaches right away realized his softness. Meanwhile we're still trying to force him as a 4 and 5.
     
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  13. Francis3422

    Francis3422 Member

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    With his high release point and being a good jump shooter I like his focus on the dribbling and pulling up. I previously had been at the point where I just wanted him to focus more on being an interior player, but maybe this is the wrong mindset. He is super young, and he will naturally gain weight and strength as he gets older. If we are going to get him up to be an effective big wing, the time is certainly now.


    My concern with this though is that his jumpshot is generally pretty slow. He really needs to speed it up just a bit.

    As far as creating off the dribble, I don’t think he is going to be particularly dynamic. I do think that he can get a few basic moves down and be really effective at them.
     
  14. peleincubus

    peleincubus Member

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    A random stat i just saw that's interesting is Jabari at age 20 is taking more 3's per game than Curry was his first 3 seasons at the age of 21-23. The NBA has changed in a drastic way. If Jabari improves his % again this year all of Clutchfans can truly STFU. He is the perfect player to win in the playoffs he can switch and hit 3's at his position at a elite rate.
     
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  15. Easy

    Easy Boban Only Fan
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    The 3pt shot became sexy partly because of Curry. Kids started to realize that one of the best tickets to get your foot into the NBA is being a good 3pt shooter.

    And if you can shoot and can play defense and is tall, you will be wanted by a lot of teams.
     
  16. jcmoon

    jcmoon Member

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    i actually played poker with jabari's uncle(legs), LA, last night and he says we are in for a treat this season. Jabari's gained 24 pounds of muscle over the summer and has changed his 3 point shot to have more arch on it....it was too flat before.... He says we are in for a treat this season and sees jabari hitting at around 38 percent for 3.... I am excited to see jabari pan out....we are all rooting for you kid!
     
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  17. daywalker02

    daywalker02 Member

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    His dad is not a bad coach but I still would have let my kid learn how to score in the post more......

     
  18. daywalker02

    daywalker02 Member

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    There is no problem with shooting, being tall and long and trying to defend.

    It is the fluidity that sets great players apart from common or just decent players and Hakeem was Top 1 or Top 2 most fluid athletes there was All Time. Best footwork and scoring and blocking instincts to add to that.

    I also regard the Dream as one of the better shooters, a great close range and fadeaway shooter himself.

    Jabari however has the tools to be a Top 20 player in this league though...not Hakeem.


     
    #2278 daywalker02, Aug 27, 2024
    Last edited: Aug 27, 2024
  19. Houston77

    Houston77 COOKIES AND CAKE, MY TEAM BAKED!
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  20. Houston77

    Houston77 COOKIES AND CAKE, MY TEAM BAKED!
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    Great stats for a guy whose “ceiling is a role player.”
     

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