Rockets' Jabari Smith Jr. Injury Update Revealed

Jabari Smith Jr. has been out of the Houston Rockets lineup for two weeks.

Jan 1, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. (10) dunks the ball as Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) defends during the first quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

It's been a little more than two weeks since Houston Rockets power forward Jabari Smith Jr. broke his hand.

The injury was set to keep Smith out for 4-8 weeks depending on how he responded to treatment.

Rockets head coach Ime Udoka gave reporters an update on Smith's prognosis ahead of their game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday. Udoka said that Smith would not need to undergo surgery.

If Smith is going to be out for "a week longer" to avoid surgery, that would mean his timeline goes from 4-8 weeks to 5-9 weeks, but without a procedure being done, chances are he will lean more towards the longer part of that timeline.

That should get Smith back on the floor by early March, which would give him about a month to get back into the swing of things before a potential playoff run.

The Rockets have found ways to remain competitive despite Smith's absence. The team is 6-2 in games without Smith as Amen Thompson has started a majority of the games where he has been sidelined.

Even though the Rockets have played well without Smith, they still miss his defense, so he needs to make sure that he is healthy going into the stretch run.

The Rockets are back in action tomorrow against the Detroit Pistons at 1 p.m. CT.

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