Rockets' Jabari Smith Jr. 'Feeling Better' Following Second Ankle Injury
HOUSTON — There is a good chance that Jabari Smith Jr. will return to the Houston Rockets' lineup Wednesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers. Smith missed the Rockets' previous game due to a left ankle sprain sustained against the Utah Jazz.
He rolled his left ankle during the final seconds of the Rockets' overtime victory Saturday night. Smith isn't 100 percent sure he will play against the Trail Blazers. However, he was at shootaround Wednesday morning "feeling out" his wounded ankle.
"I am feeling good and better," Smith said. "I will see if it feels better tonight. I am just happy that it is not anything major. It is something you can bounce back from quickly. Thankful that it isn't anything bad."
Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. shoots the ball over Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) during overtime at Toyota Center.
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Smith's injury against the Jazz marked his second sprained ankle of the season. His first came in a loss to the Phoenix Suns on Dec. 29. In both instances, Smith went down without stepping on anyone's foot.
He missed one game with his previous ankle injury. But after sustaining another one in less than a month, Smith is making a few changes to avoid more problems in the future.
"Just trying to strengthen it to prevent these types of things from happening," Smith said. "Maybe change my shoes, tape tighter, or work on landing. I'm just trying to work on different things, and I think it will improve as I get stronger and work on my body more."
Before going down with an injury, Smith had one of his best performances of the year. He helped the Rockets knock off the Jazz by scoring 24 points on 9 of 19 shooting, 4 of 8 from behind the arc, 10 rebounds, a block and a steal.
Smith's performance against the Jazz marked the fourth time this season he finished with 20 or more points while recording 10-plus rebounds. The Rockets are 4-0 when Smith achieves the feat.
