Overview
- Smart led the Rockets with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists in 24 minutes during his first game for Houston, a performance reported in the Sunday preseason exhibition in Macao.
- Head coach Ime Udoka praised Smart’s experience, toughness and cerebral play, and the team expects him to serve as the main ballhandler and defensive anchor when VanVleet is out of the lineup.
- The Rockets split the two-game China series with the Mavericks but rested several regulars, so the preseason sample is limited and definitive rotation decisions remain provisional.
- Film study from the Macao games showed Houston experimenting with a VanVleet‑Durant‑Şengün offensive framework while Jabari Smith Jr. displayed encouraging shooting, handling and rebounding in the short sample.
- Smart’s two‑year signing was made to add dribble and pass skill without losing defense, and his arrival could ease late‑game ballhandling pressure on younger guards and sharpen Houston’s transition chances.