When the Houston Rockets last saw the Spurs on Oct. 27 in San Antonio, both teams didn’t resemble what they ultimately became as the NBA’s 2023-24 regular season progressed.
Between poor execution late in the game and a series of controversial officiating calls that mostly went San Antonio’s direction, the Rockets blew a late lead in the second half and lost in overtime.
Since that game, though? Houston is 10-7, while the Spurs are 2-17 — including an ongoing 16-game losing streak.
On Monday at Toyota Center, the Rockets will look for some measure of revenge as the Spurs finally make a return trip to Houston.
From an individual standpoint, the player most looking to make amends could be Jabari Smith Jr., a second-year forward for the Rockets. Smith struggled versus talented rookie Victor Wembanyama late in that first matchup, but Smith has been much better of late.
In 17 games since, Smith is averaging 13.0 points and 8.6 rebounds per game while shooting 52.4% overall and 38.9% on 3-pointers.