Rookie Jabari Smith Jr. and second-year prospects Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun are representing the Houston Rockets in the annual Rising Stars event, as part of the NBA’s 2023 All-Star weekend. The mini-tournament will take place on Friday, Feb. 17, in Salt Lake City.
Rising Stars tournament games will be played to a target score, meaning each game will be won on a shot or free throw instead of the clock running out. The first two games will be played to 40 points, and the final game between the winners will be played to 25 points.
On Tuesday, the 21 active players (11 rookies, 10 sophomores) who were selected to the event by NBA assistant coaches were drafted onto three seven-player teams. Seven G League players selected by the league office will comprise the fourth team.
Former NBA players Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah, Deron Williams and Jason Terry are serving as honorary head coaches, while assistant coaches from the NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs will join them.
In a seven-round format, Gasol, Noah, and Williams each drafted their NBA teams on Tuesday afternoon. Here’s a look at how it all went down, including where each Rockets player went in the order. Green and Sengun will be teammates for Team Deron.