A potential rivalry might be brewing between Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. and superstar prospect Victor Wembanyama.
Smith got Twitter buzzing when he took note of Wembanyama’s reaction when the Rockets obtained the No. 4-overall pick in the NBA draft lottery on Tuesday.
When the fourth pick was announced, cameras captured Wembanyama, who was at a draft lottery party in Paris with his family, appeared to celebrate.
The 19-year-old French phenom can be seen looking to his left smiling, before he made a face and turned his head in a now-viral video of his reaction.
On Wednesday, Smith reposted the video in a quote-tweet, with a pencil and note emoji.
Houston’s second-year big man — who was drafted No. 3 overall by Houston in 2022 — did not share further context about his tweet, and Wembanyama did not address it.
However, NBA Twitter had a field day over the post, with many fans looking forward to Smith and Wembanyama facing off on the court.
The Rockets-Spurs rivalry is considered one of the most chippy as both teams are in the Southwest Division and located on Interstate 10 in Texas.
“That’s the matchup I want to see,” one person wrote, while another added, “This is going to be a movie.”
Other people mentioned similarities between Smith and Wembanyama, such as their lanky frames.
While there are conflicting reports about his height, Wembanyama is considered at minimum 7-foot-2, and ESPN reported he is 7-5.
Smith is 6-11.
He averaged 12.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists last season for Houston.
Smith previously described Wembanyama as a “problem” following the 2022-23 season.
Wembanyama is the most-buzzed-about prospect in the 2023 draft class — with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski touting him as “the most highly anticipated player to ever enter the NBA… Maybe the greatest prospect in the history of team sports.”
The 19-year-old is expected to be selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Spurs.
Wembanyama led the Metropolitans 92 of France’s Pro A league to a 93-85 victory over Paris on Tuesday with a game-high 26 points and nine rebounds.
He did not attend the draft lottery due to the French League season, his third campaign.