After two seasons as the worst team in the NBA, the Houston Rockets will tip off their 2022-23 campaign on Wednesday night with the No. 3 selection in the 2022 draft injecting some hope into their lineup.
Former Auburn standout Jabari Smith Jr. will make his NBA debut with the Rockets, ready to play after missing the final three preseason games.
In Houston’s preseason opener, Smith had 21 points, eight rebounds and two assists and shot 5-of-8 on 3-pointers against the San Antonio Spurs. But Smith sprained his ankle at practice and missed the rest of the preseason schedule.
Cleared to play on Wednesday night, Smith is looking forward to his making his NBA debut against the Atlanta Hawks, and with the game on the road, he won’t be playing far from where he was a high school star in Tyrone, Georgia.
“It’s real cool,” Smith said. “When I seen the schedule come out, I was real excited. A lot of people were texting me, telling me they was going to be at the game and be there to support me, so it’s a little homecoming, so I’m excited about it.”
Smith will start at power forward for the Rockets at 6:30 p.m. CDT Tuesday.
“It’s more like excitement and readiness,” Smith said about his NBA debut. “I feel like all my jitters went away in Summer League and playing my first preseason game. It’s just basketball, so I’m really just excited about it and ready.”
Rockets coach Stephen Silas described Smith’s demeanor as “even” when he talked to reporters at practice on Tuesday.
“I’m excited for him,” Silas said. “There is so much excitement just to be a rookie and to be in the starting lineup and all of that stuff, but to be home as well, that’s just another layer, so I’m excited for him. I want him to enjoy the moment and not put too much pressure on himself.”
The Hawks won 43 games and the Rockets won 20 last season.
“A real good test for the season, a real good test to see where we are,” Smith said of the opener. “We’re playing one of the best teams in the league, so it’ll be a good test for us just to see where we are, see how we stack up against a team like this, against a backcourt like this, a team that’s been to the playoffs, a team that has won some games.”
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Smith joins five other Auburn alumni on season-opening rosters in the NBA – Walker Kessler of the Utah Jazz, Davion Mitchell of the Sacramento Kings, Chuma Okeke of the Orlando Magic, Isaac Okoro of the Cleveland Cavaliers and JT Thor of the Charlotte Hornets.
The most former Auburn players to appear in one NBA regular season is six. It’s happened five times, including last season, when Mitchell, Okeke, Okoro and Thor were joined by Sharife Cooper and Jared Harper.
The first instance came in the 1980-81 season, when Eddie Johnson with the Hawks and Mike Mitchell with the Cavaliers were selected for the NBA All-Star Game. Cedrick Hordges, John Mengelt, Myles Patrick and Stan Pietkiewicz also played during the 1980-81 season.
In the 1994-95 season, Auburn alumni Charles Barkley, Matt Geiger, Chris Morris, Chuck Person, Wesley Person and Aaron Swinson played in the NBA.
In the 1998-99 season, Barkley, Geiger, Morris and the Person brothers still were playing, along with Moochie Norris.
In 2002-03 season, the six Auburn alumni in the NBA were Jamison Brewer, Pat Burke, Adam Harrington, Mamadou N’Diaye, Norris and Wesley Person.
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
