The opening night of the NBA 2K24 Summer League in Las Vegas was supposed to be all about the pro debut of 2023 No. 1 draft pick Victor Wembanyama, whose San Antonio Spurs were playing the Charlotte Hornets and No. 2 draft pick Brandon Miller, a former Alabama All-American.

But before Wembanyama could even get on the court at the Thomas and Mack Center on Friday night, Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. already was stealing the show.

In the game that preceded the Spurs-Hornets contest, the former Auburn standout tossed in a buzzer-beating 3-point shot to lift the Rockets to a 100-99 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.

Houston had an opportunity to win after Smith blocked an alley-oop dunk attempt by Ibou Badji.

After a timeout, the Rockets had 0.6 seconds to score. Smith caught an inbounds pass beyond the top of the key and heaved in a 28-footer to win the game.

Smith scored Houston’s final nine points as he finished with 33. Eighteen came in the third quarter. Smith scored 14 points at the free-throw line and had seven rebounds in the game.

The third player picked in the 2022 NBA Draft, Smith averaged 12.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.5 steals and 0.9 blocks while starting 79 games for Houston during his rookie season.

He’s back for a second Summer League tour after earning second-team recognition on the NBA’s All-Rookie team for the 2022-23 season.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.