Jabari Smith Jr. and Kevin Durant survived an awkward first dance. Now, the Houston Rockets forward believes the real show is about to begin. After a rocky debut season spent finding chemistry with the 16x All-Star, Smith says the growing pains are behind Houston and a major leap awaits in 2026-27, no matter what the offseason noise suggests.

Appearing on ESPN’s Chiney Today with host Chiney Ogwumike, the 23-year-old forward answered what we can expect from the recalibrated Rockets. Despite chemistry issues visible on court post-All-Star Weekend, the team is adapting to having KD on the roster.

“I think you’re gonna see a team that is a little bit more used to playing with each other,” Smith Jr. said regarding expectations for next season. “We added Kevin Durant last year, just gotta adjust to playing with him. His playstyle, obviously anybody can play with him. Just tendencies, getting Fred back will be huge for us. And I think you’ll just see everybody older, obviously a lot better, more mature. See a lot better team next year for sure.”

It’s not just about continuity and familiarity. Around All-Star Weekend, it was revealed that KD allegedly had a burner account trashing several teammates, current and former. The messages linked to him heavily trashed Rockets’ young stars, Alperen Sengun and Jabari Smith Jr.

After Houston finished fifth in the Western Conference and suffered a six-game first-round playoff exit against the Los Angeles Lakers, questions surfaced regarding team chemistry and roster fit around Slim.

However, Smith Jr. emphasized to Chiney that not only had the team grown around KD, but he had also personally improved by studying Durant’s daily preparation.

Despite visible adjustment challenges on the floor, Smith Jr. praised Durant’s legendary practice habits, detailing how the 37-year-old superstar sets the tone for the entire locker room.

“It’s just gonna be full speed from the jump,” Smith Jr. described their practice reps. “You think at that age obviously you don’t wanna warm up. We get off the training table and from there it’s 100% full speed. Every rep is a game rep… it makes you do that. So I think I’ve definitely learned that from him just making every practice rep fast in the game, repping to make the game easier. Everything you hear is real, his work ethic is real, how hard he works is real… everything you hear is true.”

The Rockets’ transition around Durant coincided with Fred VanVleet missing the season due to a torn ACL, leaving Houston’s offense searching for rhythm during crucial stretches.

VanVleet set his return for the 2026-27 opener, which is a major catalyst for Houston’s optimistic outlook. Not only does he solve their point guard void, but VanVleet also showed similar confidence on ESPN’s NBA Today with Malika Andrews, by declaring, “I think we can win the championship next year.”

Even as KD remains at the center of trade rumors, all signs point to him playing his second year in Houston alongside a developing young core featuring Smith Jr., Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson, with additional steadiness of VanVleet and offseason addition Marcus Smart.

Given Smith’s assurance, it looks like the Rockets are positioning themselves as serious contenders in a crowded Western Conference.