Jabari Smith Sr. recently revealed the Oklahoma City Thunder apparently promised they would draft his son, Jabari Smith Jr., last year with the second overall pick.
Of course, the way the top of the draft unfolded is well-documented.
Smith was thought to be the top pick by the Orlando Magic; every credible report indicated he would be the selection. Instead, the Magic took Paolo Banchero and Smith fell to the Houston Rockets drafting third, behind Chet Holmgren at No. 2.
However, the Thunder apparently made a promise to take Smith once the Magic made their pick, according to his father in an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape.
Smith Sr. described his son’s emotions once that didn’t happen.
They called Chet Holmgren’s name, and he lost it. Leg went to shaking. I looked at him. He is almost in tears. And I forgot that he told me that OKC (promised to draft him), so I got to keep my mouth closed about that. I talked to him, ‘Well, hey, what are you doing? Straighten your face, man. You good, you good, you good.’ You know the camera was right at the table.
First of all, you’re a millionaire. Second of all, I don’t think he understand the numbers of how many people in the world that play basketball who would love to just be in this room. It’s a blessing. It’s a (heck) of a day.
The revelation by Smith Sr. is surprising considering Holmgren was thought to be the top priority of the Thunder on draft night. They were one of two teams that Holmgren visited and were reportedly his top choice over the Magic or Rockets.
The Thunder took Holmgren and may have broken their promise to Smith, as a result. But, the draft is consumed each year with plenty of posturing and other misinformation designed to help teams get the player they want and this situation could be another example of that.
Chet Holmgren's agent, Bill Duffy, told me on draft night that Holmgren was the Thunder's "No. 1 priority."
"He was the person for Oklahoma City," Sam Presti said after the draft. "He was the person for the Thunder."
Make of that what you will.
— Joe Mussatto (@joe_mussatto) February 15, 2023
Though the eventual results of the draft were very surprising last June, Smith has seemingly moved on and embraced his situation in Houston. He holds no ill will toward the Magic or Thunder for passing on him and hasn’t let the situation affect him.
Smith is averaging 11.9 points, seven rebounds and 1.2 assists on 30.1% shooting from 3-point range. He was one of 11 first-year players selected to compete in the NBA Rising Stars competition on Friday as part of All-Star Weekend.
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