Reaction: Rockets stun Celtics, Jabari Smith Jr. continues 20-10 binge

The recent surge by rookie forward Jabari Smith Jr. is only continuing to grow for the young Houston Rockets.

Smith had 24 points and 12 rebounds — his third consecutive game with 20 or more points and 10-plus rebounds — as the Rockets pulled a massive upset over one of the NBA’s best teams with Monday’s 111-109 victory (box score) over the visiting Boston Celtics.

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“I’m just letting it go,” Smith told AT&T SportsNet’s Vanessa Richardson of his improvements as a shooter. “I’m trusting my work. I’ve been playing basketball since I was born. I’m trusting my work, trusting what got me here, and just letting it fly.”

Boston fell to 47-22 with the shocking loss, while Houston improved to 16-52. The win didn’t immediately harm the Rockets in the 2023 draft race, either, since fellow bottom-feeder Detroit (16-53) had an upset of its own with an earlier victory over Indiana.

Smith connected on 9-of-11 shots (81.8%) against the Celtics, including 5-of-6 from 3-point range (83.3%). Jalen Green scored a team-high 28 points for Houston, while starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. dished out 13 assists while turning it over only once.

KJ Martin added 20 points and 8 rebounds and was a force in transition, making 8-of-13 shots (61.5%) as he attacked the rim.

Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 43 points on 16-of-25 shooting (64.0%), including 4-of-10 on 3-pointers (40.0%). Fellow All-Star Jayson Tatum had 22 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists, though he shot just 8-of-22 from the field (36.4%), 2-of-10 on 3-pointers (20.0%), and his attempt at a tying shot in the final seconds rolled off.

Scroll on for highlights, analysis and postgame interviews. Next up is Houston’s third game of this six-game homestand on Wednesday versus the Los Angeles Lakers. Tipoff is at 7:00 p.m. Central.