Smith will get the starting nod at power forward Sunday against the Spurs.

Smith showed that he could make an immediate impact when he scored 21 off the bench in Friday's contest against the Grizzlies, and coach Kevin McHale will reward him with his first start for his new team. The move will delegate Donatas Motiejunas to a reserve role.

Smith came off the bench to score 21 points (9-21 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 3-3 FT) in his Rockets debut against the Grizzlies Friday. He also added eight rebounds and three assists in 32 minutes.

It was a strong performance for Smith, and against a strong Grizzlies defense. It's too early to declare Smith revitalized now that he is with a new team, but it is fair to point out that the 29-year-old seemed capable of more than he was producing while he was with the Pistons.

Smith was present at the Rockets' shootaround Friday morning and is on track to play versus Memphis, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Smith's presence at shootaround all but guarantees he'll be active for Friday's contest, but how many minutes he'll see with his new team remains to be seen. A chance of scenery could do wonders for Smith's value, but from a fantasy perspective, it's best to wait at least one game to see how coach Kevin McHale deploys the versatile forward.

Smith is expected to be with the Rockets before their game against the Grizzlies on Friday and could potentially play in the game, the Houston Chronicle reports.

The Rockets are working on completing a trade to try and clear the roster space for Smith without having to waiver a player outright. It's probably more likely that Smith will make his debut with the Rockets for Sunday's game, but it's possible he could be in the lineup Friday.

Smith will sign with the Rockets once he has cleared waivers, Fox 26 in Houston reports.

Smith was apparently promised a starting spot in Houston, and will reportedly sign a one-year contract at a pro-rated portion of the bi-annual exception. The Rockets were in need of a power forward with Terrence Jones out indefinitely, and it appears Smith will likely fill that void. Donatas Motiejunas will likely see his minutes impacted most by the expected addition.

Smith was released by the Pistons on Monday, ESPN reports.

Smith has really struggled this season, shooting a career-low 39.1 percent from the field and just 46.8 percent from the line. The move is a bit surprising given the nature of his contract and the hit the Pistons will take against the salary cap, but it appears the team is ready to move on. Greg Monroe figures to be the biggest beneficiary of the move.

Smith scored 21 points (9-16 FG, 3-5 FT) with 13 rebounds, five assists, two steals, and five blocks in 38 minutes Saturday.

Smith also had seven turnovers, but head-to-head players continue to love the production J-Smoove is giving them this season. The five blocks and 13 rebounds were both season-highs and Smith is a player whose value varies greatly between head-to-head and rotisserie leagues. If you own him in rotisserie leagues, big night like this are a great tool in order to rid you of his hurtful percentages via trades.

Smith had another poor shooting night, going 5-for-14 for 12 points Friday in a win over the Suns.

This was the ninth time that Smith shot under 40 percent in a game this season, and the third time this month. To make matters worse, Smith almost gave the game away late by missing two free-throws with under 30 seconds left in the game while the Suns only trailed by three. Smith did salvage his fantasy night by grabbing 11 rebounds, blocking two shots and recording two steals.

Smith has held to just 21 minutes Friday in a loss to the Trail Blazers, scoring 10 points (4-10 FG, 2-2 FT) and grabbing five rebounds.

Pistons' coach Stan Van Gundy used Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe as his big men down the stretch in what ended up being their 13th consecutive loss. Owners should get used to the fluctuating minutes, considering Van Gundy is likely to try to mix things up to produce more wins.

Smith provided 23 points (9-18 FG, 1-2 3Pt, 4-6 FT), eight rebounds, seven assists, and three blocks in 48 minutes in the overtime loss to the 76ers on Saturday.

Smith continues to act as a point forward for the Pistons and has 7.4 assists (to go along with 16.0 points and 8.4 rebounds) in his last five games. He hit 50 percent of his field goals for just the second time this season (and he has not made more than half of his shots).

Smith put up 18 points (7-17 FG, 0-1 3Pt, 4-4 FT), 10 rebounds, six assists, and three steals in 33 minutes in the Tuesday loss to the Lakers.

Smith had put up excellent numbers in his last five games (14.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, 8.2 assists, 2.2 steals, 2.0 blocks) and it may not be a coincidence that he has only attempted five 3-pointers (making two) in that time. He is hitting just 39 percent of his field goals, but the lack of threes indicates that coach Stan Van Gundy may be getting through to the mercurial forward.

Smith has averaged 14.2 points, seven rebounds, eight assists, 1.6 steals and two blocks over the past five games.

This five-game stretch comes on the heals of Smith being benched for the fourth quarter of a loss to the Suns on Nov. 19. His shooting percentages (39.2 percent from the floor, 35.0 percent from the line) have remained abysmal during his current hot streak, but it's hard to argue with Smith's production in counting stats. The veteran forward remains a solid head-to-head and daily option while proving a more risky proposition for rotisserie leagues.

Smith was benched for the final 16 minutes Wednesday's loss to the Suns, the Mlive.com reports. He finished the game with five points, four rebounds and three assists in 23 minutes.

Smith had a "spirited verbal exchange" with Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy when leaving the floor in the third quarter, and the veteran forward didn't find his way off the bench the rest of the night. Van Gundy stressed that he was just using the players that gave him the best chance to win in the fourth quarter, and Smith agreed that he was struggling to find his "offensive flow" on the night. While it doesn't appear that this outing from Smith spells long-term doom, owners will want to keep a close eye on the situation over the next couple of games to make sure he's not at odds with his coach.

Smith scored a team-high 19 points (8-19 FG, 1-2 3P, 2-3 FT) with 11 rebounds, four assists and three blocks in 39 minutes during Monday's loss to the Bulls.

He'd either scored in double digits or pulled down double digit rebounds in every game so far, but this was Smith's first actual double-double of the season.

Smith made just five of his 14 shots Friday against the Bucks for 14 points.

Smith's poor shooting night comes a game after he went 2-for-17 from the floor versus the Knicks on Wednesday. However, Smith still played 36 minutes, so his playing time doesn't seem to be affected.

Smith played 30 minutes in Thursday's loss to Minnesota, finishing with 10 points (5-16 FG, 0-2 3Pt), seven rebounds, four assists, two blocks and three turnovers.

After a decent season debut against the Nuggets on Wednesday, Smith reverted back to the disappointment he was for much of the 2013-14 campaign in Thursday's loss to Minnesota. While he has made a more concentrated effort to work his way into the post, Smith continues to settle for too many long jumpers. He's shooting just 36.8 percent (14-of-38) clip from the floor, including an 0-of-5 mark from downtown. Smith has four blocks through the first two games and there's little doubt his defensive production will wane, but he's a fundamentally flawed player on the offensive end of the court who will give his owners fits, especially in rotisserie leagues.

Smith played 33 minutes and scored 17 points on Thursday against the Sixers.

Smith went down with an ankle injury earlier this week, but felt good enough about it Thursday, that he was able to play in over 30 minutes of action. The ankle injury was never deemed to be something serious, so it's not too much of surprise he was able to suit up and play. He'll be all systems go for the Pistons' opener against the Nuggets Wednesday.

Smith (ankle) did not practice Monday.

Smith sustained a minor ankle injury during Saturday's preseason game. Coach Stan Van Gundy said Smith could have returned to the game, so it doesn't look like anything serious, but he's likely being held out as a precaution.

Smith suffered a minor ankle injury in Saturday's preseason win over Atlanta, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com reports.

Coach Stan Van Gundy said Smith could have gone back in after suffering the injury, but there was no sense in risking anything for a preseason game. Smith should be fine for Thursday's game against the 76ers.

Smith started at small forward in Wednesday's preseason win over the Hornets. He finsihed with 14 points (6-12 FG, 1-5 FT, 1-2 3Pt), 10 rebounds, five assists, one block and five turnovers in 34 minutes.

The Pistons have used a different starting lineup in each of their four preseason tilts. Smith has been a part of the starting unit in three of the fours games, but Wednesday marked his first starting appearance at small forward. He was joined by Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe in the starting frontcourt, which is the same disastrous starting lineup Detroit rolled out for the majority of the 2013-14 campaign. It remains unlikely that both Smith and Monroe will be a part of the starting lineup this season, but both big men will continue to see heavy minutes.