Jabari Smith Jr. rejoins Houston’s starting lineup for 2025-26 season

As expected, fourth-year forward Jabari Smith Jr. is returning to the starting lineup for the 2025-26 Houston Rockets.

“For the most part we have four guys penciled in, and we’ll figure out what to with the fifth,” head coach Ime Udoka said earlier in the week.

At Saturday’s training camp practice, Udoka confirmed that Smith is the fourth alongside Kevin Durant, Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson. Durant and Sengun were both All-Stars last season, and the expectation is for Thompson to potentially join that tier in the near future.

With three NBA seasons under his belt, Smith started for approximately his first two-and-a-half seasons before breaking his hand in a practice last January.

From there, Thompson excelled as a starter, and Smith played off the bench in a sixth-man role upon returning in late February.

But the Rockets traded away two starters (Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks) to acquire Durant, and they recently lost another when Fred VanVleet tore the ACL in his right knee.

So, Houston entered camp with two starting lineup spots theoretically up for grabs — and days in, it appears Smith has already done enough to secure one of those. The apparent synergies between Smith and Durant certainly don’t hurt, either.

Now 22 years old, Smith previously earned praise from Udoka for a strong offseason, and he’s young enough to where further bumps in his production are certainly plausible.

In 30.1 minutes per game last season, Smith averaged 12.2 points (43.8% FG, 35.4% on 3-pointers) and 7.0 rebounds while also becoming one of Houston’s most valuable and versatile defenders. The Rockets finished among the NBA’s top-five teams in defensive rating.

With four starting lineup spots locked in, that now leaves three players — guard Reed Sheppard, wing Tari Eason, and center Steven Adams — potentially in play for the final slot alongside Durant, Smith, Thompson, and Sengun.

Veteran forward Dorian Finney-Smith could be an option later on, but the team doesn’t expect him to be ready at the start of the regular season due to offseason ankle surgery.

As far as the three options who are currently available, expect Udoka and the Rockets to explore different combinations and stylistic preferences during the upcoming preseason, which begins with Monday’s home exhibition versus the Atlanta Hawks.

Tipoff from Toyota Center is at 7:00 p.m. Central, and the game will be televised regionally on Space City Home Network.

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