What the Warriors fear the most is actually him! But the Rockets refused to provide him with more playing time?

In a previous NBA playoff game, the Golden State Warriors defeated the Houston Rockets who played at home 103-89. After this game, the Warriors, who won the tiebreaker, locked the total score of the series at 4-3 and successfully advanced to the Western Conference semi-finals; while the Rockets were somewhat regrettably defeated the last game and stopped in the first round of the playoffs.

In this game, Rockets forward star Jabari Smith Jr., who performed well in the previous games, did not get enough playing time. Smith played 12 minutes and 08 seconds in the whole game, made 1 of 5 shots and 1 of 3 from outside the three-point line, and scored 3 points and 4 rebounds, with a plus-negative value of -9. Smith's offensive efficiency is indeed relatively average, but on the other hand, most Rockets' players' outside shooting feel is also very average. Smith also did not get enough playing time and mobile phone opportunities. In this case, he really couldn't take on more responsibilities on the offensive end, and he also couldn't provide more support to the team on the defensive end. In fact, with the Rockets' outside shooting feeling in this game, combined with the fact that Steven Adams's effect on the court is not ideal, Smith really has reason to get more opportunities to perform. However, Rockets head coach Ime Udoka's way of employing people is really rigid, and he can't show his strength.

In the NBA regular season this season, Smith played 57 games in 82 games, averaging 30.1 minutes per game, averaging 12.2 points, 7 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.4 steals and 0.8 blocks, and 1.1 turnovers and 2.2 fouls. He shot 43.8%, three-point shooting percentage 35.4%, and free throw shooting percentage 82.5%. In the playoffs, Smith averaged 20.5 minutes in these seven games, with averaging 7.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, 0.6 assists, 0.1 steals, and 0.7 blocks. He also had 1.4 turnovers and 0.9 fouls. His shooting percentage was 50%, his three-point shooting percentage was 45.5%, and his free throw shooting percentage was 80%. During the playoffs, Smith's performance on the offensive end was actually quite good, and his offensive efficiency and his three-point shooting percentage were able to maintain a high level. Smith has a very obvious advantage in body shape, and coupled with his good shooting ability, it is indeed difficult for the opponent to effectively limit his shots. However, the problem is that Smith's value in this round of series has not been fully recognized by the Rockets coaching staff from beginning to end, and he still cannot get more playing time in such a life-and-death battle. It can only be said that Rockets head coach Uduka is not an online coach with on-site command and dispatching capabilities. It seems that this has directly affected the team's long-term development.