Former Auburn standout Jabari Smith Jr. scored the first basket of his NBA career on Wednesday night.
The third player picked in the 2022 NBA Draft, Smith started at power forward for the Houston Rockets in their 2022-23 season-opening game against the Atlanta Hawks.
Smith’s first basket came on a 25-foot pullup with 8:06 left in the first half. The 3-pointer trimmed the Hawks’ lead to 36-35 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, not far from where Smith was a prep star at Sandy Creek High School in Tyrone, Georgia.
The basket didn’t account for Smith’s first NBA points, though.
He had made two free throws with 8:52 left in the second quarter after being fouled on a shot under the basket.
Smith averaged 16.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.0 blocks per game in his only season with Auburn, during which the Tigers posted a 28-6 record, won the SEC regular-season title and reached the second round of the NCAA tourney.
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
