F Josh Smith, who played most recently in China, has signed with New Orleans. In 26 games with the Sichuan Blue Whales, Smith averaged 18.8 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.0 blocks.

PF Josh Smith could work his way back into the rotation, said interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff, who blamed Smith's recent benching on the player being out of shape. Smith, who joined Houston via trade with the Clippers on Jan. 22, shot .246/.152/.200 while averaging 3.8 points over his last 10 games before being benched five games ago.

PF Josh Smith missed seven of his eight shots from the field and extended his streak of games shooting below 50 percent to eight. Smith finished with two points and missed both of his 3-point attempts. In his previous seven games, Smith shot 20.5 percent while averaging 3.4 points per game. He has reached at least 50 percent in a game only once since rejoining the Rockets on Jan. 22, a span of 15 games.

F Josh Smith filled the void in the middle and finished with a season-high 19 points.

F Josh Smith, in his second game with the Rockets, keyed a second-half offensive resurgence and Houston rallied from a third-quarter deficit to race past the Mavericks 115-104 Sunday. Smith had 16 points off the bench and energized the Rockets for a second consecutive game following his acquisition from the Clippers on Friday."I feel comfortable," Smith said. "It might have been a little different story if this had been my first time getting to know these guys, but being able to get an opportunity to play with the same team around the same group of guys is awesome."

F Josh Smith contributed to the Rockets many of the things they sorely missed after he surprisingly opted to sign with the Clippers during the offseason. Smith made his mark, totaling six assists, five rebounds, three blocks and two steals in 21 minutes after arriving at the arena less than two hours before tipoff."I'm definitely a little rusty but it felt natural out there," Smith said. "It felt natural being around my teammates and being able to play in the same system."I felt good, I felt comfortable out there. I made mistakes but with timing those will be corrected."The Rockets acquired Smith from the Clippers on Friday, with the teams exchanging draft rights and Houston receiving cash considerations. Smith averaged 12 points and six rebounds over 55 games with Houston last season yet signed with the Clippers following an impactful postseason run. He fell out of the rotation in Los Angeles and expressed joy upon his return to Houston. "It's like a breath of fresh air," Smith said. .

F Josh Smith was traded to the Clippers on Friday for the draft rights to Sergei Lishouck and cash considerations. Lishouck plays for UCAM Murcia in Spain.

F Josh Smith came off the bench to score 13 points for Los Angeles.

Smith will log "a lot" of time at center this season, Dan Woike of the Orange County Register reports.

Coach Doc Rivers revealed the news Monday, but the Clippers' reserve minutes at center behind DeAndre Jordan will likely be a patch-work effort rather than one player dominating the workload. Still, the development opens up another spot for Smith to pick up run with his third squad in as many seasons. If he's used in a super-utility role at the three, four, and five, he could match the 26 minutes per game that he earned with the Rockets in 2014-15.

Smith is finalizing a deal with the Clippers, Shams Charania of RealGM reports.

The free agent, who spent last season with Houston and Detroit will join a Clippers team that's reloaded on the wing this offseason. Los Angeles added Lance Stephenson via trade and also signed veteran Paul Pierce. Smith was a key part of the Rockets' run to the Western Conference Finals last season, averaging 12.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists while shooting 43.8 percent from the field.

Smith was waived by the Pistons via the stretch provision in December and signed by the Rockets. He averaged 12.0 points, 1.1 three-pointers, 6.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.2 blocks, and 0.9 steals in 26 minutes per game through 55 games with the Rockets in 2014-15.

Playing in 83 regular season games due to being waived by Detroit, the 29-year-old, who will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, finished his 11th NBA season in more of a sixth-man role. Smith started all 28 games with the Pistons this season, while only starting in seven of the 55 games he played for the Rockets. While his numbers dropped in Houston, Smith (44% FG, 33% 3Pt, 52% FT) managed to become a more efficient player, raising his field-goal percentage, free-throw percentage, and three-point percentage. Although he played six less minutes per game in Houston, Smith's level of play raised in the Western Conference playoffs. He became a key cog in the Rockets' run to the Western Conference finals. It is unclear whether or not Smith will be looking for a starting job or a situation of best fit in free agency.

Smith scored 20 points (7-8 FG, 3-4 3Pt, 3-12 FT) with six rebounds, five assists and two blocks in 28 minutes during Wednesday's Game 4 win over the Warriors.

While he was effective from the field, Golden State played Hack-a-Josh in the second half, and Smith's woeful free throw shooting forced him to the bench. His spot in the starting five is still likely safe for Wednesday's Game 5, however.

Smith will remain in the starting lineup for Monday's Game 4 against the Warriors, ESPN.com's Calvin Watkins reports.

With a 17-for-47 (36.2 FG%) mark from the field through the first three games of the series, Smith is probably shooting far too much and not efficiently enough for the Rockets' liking, but Terrence Jones isn't showing enough off the bench for coach Kevin McHale to justify making a change. Smith is at least compensating for his brick-laying ways by contributing in other categories, as he's posted averages of 5.3 boards, 3.7 assists, and 1.0 blocks during the series.

Smith will get the start in Thursday's Game 6 against the Clippers.

Smith was inserted into the starting lineup for Game 5, but coach Kevin McHale was originally non-committal when asked if he'd stick with Smith for Game 6. Smith didn't put up huge numbers in Game 5 (nine points, seven rebounds, four assists), but he helped the Rockets get off to a strong start as they staved off elimination. Houston will look to do the same Thursday - this time on the Clippers' home floor.

Smith is now expected to start Thursday against the Clippers, Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com reports.

Despite coach Kevin McHale indicating that the starting power forward would not be named until Thursday, Watkins has reported that Smith will likely remain in the starting five. If Smith makes another start, Terrence Jones would likely remain in a bench role.

Smith's coach, Kevin McHale, was noncommittal about him remaining in the starting lineup Thursday for Game 6 against the Clippers, Mark Berman of Fox Houston reports.

Smith moved into the starting lineup Tuesday for Game 5 and had nine points on 4-of-7 shooting to go with seven rebounds over 22 minutes. If Smith moves back to the bench, Terrence Jones is the likely candidate to start at power forward. When asked if Smith would start, McHale said, "We'll find out tomorrow night." This will be a situation to monitor throughout the day Thursday.

Smith will get the start at power forward in Game 5 against Los Angeles on Tuesday, Rockets Play-by-Play announcer Kevin Ackerman reports.

Smith's move into the starting lineup will move Terrence Jones to the bench. After playing a combined 27 minutes over the last two games, Smith will be in the starting lineup Tuesday as the Rockets look to stave off elimination.

Smith played a season-low 13 minutes off the bench in Game 3 against the Clippers on Friday, but still managed to finish with seven points, nine rebounds, and one steal.

Smith routinely played more than 20 minutes during the first-round series against the Mavericks but that hasn't carried over into this series against the Clippers. He played an average of 15 minutes during the past two games as it appears that coach Kevin McHale is making the strategic decision to limit Smith's minutes against the Clippers in particular. That said, the Rockets are down in the series 2-1 and McHale may have to switch things up for Game 4 on Sunday.

Smith stuffed the stat sheet in a Game 5 victory against the Mavericks, posting 20 points, eight rebounds, two assists, one steal, and two threes in 22 minutes of action.

Although limited to a bench role, Smith has been extremely effective in the Playoffs, averaging 17.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.8 blocks, and 1.8 threes in five games. While it's rather peculiar that he's hitting that many threes per game (compared to his decreased production in defensive stats), it's a great sign that he's able to contribute in many ways, even though he's playing just 25.6 minutes per game.

Smith shot 8-for-10 from the floor Sunday in a Game 4 loss to the Mavericks. He finished the game with 23 points, six rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal in 28 minutes.

Smith is shooting a surprising 50 percent from the floor so far in this series after shooting just 43.8 percent with the Rockets during the regular season. The 10-year stretch four has scored at least 11 points in every game of this series and has a combined four blocks.