NBA: Power ranking the 30 projected starting power forwards on each team
21. Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets
Jabari Smith Jr. has quietly had an impressive start to his career with the Houston Rockets. He may not get the recognition he deserves but he's quickly evolving into one of the better young stretch-bigs in the NBA. And heading into this third season, there's reason to believe that the best is yet to come for Smith and the Rockets. If he can build off his sophomore season, Smith could emerge as the third-most important player for the team. Smith is still just 21 years old and I'm not sure we know what his ceiling can be at his peak.
For a Rockets team that has a flurry of talented young players on their roster, I do believe Smith is somewhat overlooked. But if he does have a big season this year, as many believe he can, Smith is the type of player that could quickly jump onto the radar of many across the league.
With so many other big-name young players across the league, it's easy to forget about Smith. But he was a top 3 pick back in the 2022 NBA Draft and entered the NBA with plenty of potential on both ends of the floor.