Rockets Jabari Smith Jr. Latest Post Goes Viral Over Kevin Durant Support

The Houston Rockets already have a lot to deal with this season in their chase to the NBA playoffs. The two injuries to point guard Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams have been two huge blows to their aspirations, and the lack of a true point guard and no trade deadline move combined with recent offensive struggles have been quite the load to handle.

Now with an all-time great like Kevin Durant on the team, the media spotlight is much higher than last season. It seems like there is always something going on with KD and the internet every season. This latest controversy surrounding Durant and the Rockets has taken over NBA social media.

Apparently, Durant’s alleged social media burner account and some messages in a group chat that his supposed account was in were leaked. While those messages covered a variety of topics, the comments surrounding the Rockets’ current players are quite alarming and are capable of hurting the locker room if those were indeed Durant’s.

KD was asked about this whole situation for the first time on Wednesday at the Rockets practice facility and firmly said, “I’m not here to get into any Twitter nonsense. I’m just here to focus on the season. My teammates know what it is, we’ve been locked in the whole season and enjoyed our break, had a great practice, and are looking forward to the road trip.”

Kevin Durant spoke at Rockets practice today. I asked about the burner allegations. Here's what he said. pic.twitter.com/VRLhYd5liX
— Varun Shankar (@ByVarunShankar) February 18, 2026

While dismissing the claims, fans have noted Durant is always very active on X/Twitter and was on his phone quite a bit during the past All-Star weekend. It’s likely this whole situation will fade into the shadows soon, but right now it is the talk of the league on social media. It was further continued after the latest Instagram post of Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr.

KD and Bari: The Young Gun and The Star

It was supposed to be one of the plus points of the mega trade that brought Durant to Houston. Many believed that KD was the perfect mentor for Smith Jr. given some of their similarities and game. Smith Jr. is 6-foot-11 and 220 pounds, while Durant, in his 19th season, is also 6-foot-11, but 240 pounds. Smith Jr. was supposed to be an elite 3- and D-wing that could develop into an excellent starter, being the third overall pick in the 2022 NBA draft from Auburn.

While he has shown many flashes, it has not been consistent enough. Durant was supposed to help him grow, and there have been videos of them working out together. Smith Jr. clearly has a lot of respect for Durant, and it showed on his latest post. A picture with Smith Jr. and KD together during the game was one of the photos in his post, and that has now gone viral.

Jabari Smith Jr. on IG: pic.twitter.com/6P011B7B9Y
— Bradeaux (@BradeauxNBA) February 17, 2026

Whatever the rumors may be on the internet, it is clear that Smith Jr. and the Rockets team are not buying it. Those apparent messages had some harsh criticism of Smith Jr., but it’s likely whatever needed to be clarified between the two has already happened internally.

The debate will rage on by fans, but the Rockets know it has to be all about business to wrap up this second half strong and be in good position for the playoffs. Houston will need Smith Jr. to play at a high level as a starter in order for that to happen.

There was a rough stretch for him in January, but Bari has stepped up his game recently. Smith Jr. averages 15.2 points per game, along with 7.1 rebounds and shoots 43.7% from the field while going almost 36% from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Durant is coming off his 16th All-Star selection and is averaging 25.8 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 4.4 APG while shooting 50.6% from the field and 40.3% from the 3-point line.