The Houston Rockets hold the fourth spot in the Western Conference standings with a 9-3 record, and Jabari Smith Jr. has been a notable contributor to the team’s early success. This season, Smith is averaging 16.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. 

Smith opened the season with a 30-point performance, though he has cooled down to his typical production in recent matches. With glimpses of All-Star potential, the question is how high the 23-year-old forward can lift his ceiling. 

Based on his consistency and scoring efficiency, Smith could solidify his place as one of the NBA’s top 100 players. Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun are making the strongest cases for possible All-Star selections, though career-best stats are well within range for Smith.

Here are the opinions of other writers from OnSI. 

Amir Motameni 

“I’m a big believer in Jabari Smith Jr. and I think his ceiling for this season is that he can be the third best player on the team behind Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun. 

He's already shown some of what he can do offensively and I think there's another level he can go to, particularly in terms of his shooting. He’s shooting a career best 42 % from deep, and he needs to sustain that. I want to actually see him be more aggressive, he’s taking the same amount of field goal and three-point attempts as last season, he’s just shooting better. Smith’s got the physicality and the skill to create mismatches and I'd like to see him do that more often. 

With Durant and Sengun getting so much of the spotlight then Smith should have absolutely ample opportunity to get going. If he can become that consistent third option on both sides of the floor then I think Houston becomes an even more dangerous team in the West.”

Ethan J. Skolnick

"This is what it comes down to for every core Rockets player now: the playoffs. So while Smith is off to a strong start, and his perimeter shooting prowess has been particularly welcome, his true ascent can't be proven yet.

When the postseason comes, will Smith get the tough rebounds? (He's still somewhat deficient in that area). Will he take some scoring burden off Durant when teams load up on the lanky forward? And can Smith's switching ability make the Rockets dynamic defensively, even against the elite bigs and wings in the West? That's when we will know if Smith has risen to the level of his draft position, as a winning starter on a contender."