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Auburn players have incredible reactions to Jabari Smith's viral dunk

275133747_4796292347117549_592518599057046758_nby:Jonathan Wagner•03/20/22•

Jonathan Wagner

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Grant Halverson via Getty Images.

Star freshman forward Jabari Smith put on an absolute show in Auburn’s NCAA Tournament opening round victory over Jacksonville State. Smith went viral with an eye-opening poster dunk in the final minutes of the game, leaving many of his Auburn coaches and teammates in complete disbelief.

On the play, Smith got the ball towards the top of the key, dribbled in, and then finished with the impressive dunk over the Jacksonville State defender.

On Saturday, Auburn stars Zep Jasper and Wendell Green Jr. were asked about Smith’s viral dunk. Both Green and Jasper were nearly left speechless after the play.

“I told him that was like the best dunk I seen in person,” Green said about Smith’s viral play. “So I was just shocked. I was amazed. So I went all out, and I told him, you look like LeBron out there for that play (Laughter).”

Jasper was also amazed by the play, and he had a lofty comparison when discussing how Smith looked on the court for Auburn.

“I was shocked when I seen it, I was amazed,” Jasper said. “I thought he looked like a young Kobe Bryant out there with the hops.”

The dunk finished off an impressive performance for Smith

While his dunk is getting a lot of attention in the days following Auburn’s win over Jacksonville State, the play was far from Smith’s only contribution to the game. He finished the game with 20 points on 6-for-13 shooting, including 4-for-7 from beyond the arc. Smith also made four of his six free throws and added 14 rebounds and four assists.

After the game, Smith admitted that he’s actually watched the replay of his viral dunk quite a few times.

“I watched it a lot, actually,” he said. “Everybody tagging me in it. I watched it probably more times than anybody else really. I’m still shocked by it. Yeah, I watched it a lot of times, definitely. It’s something I’m going to show my kids. One to remember.

“I got a lot of texts, texts from friends back home, family back home. My dad was real hyped about it. He said it wasn’t better than his dunk at LSU, but he said he was real impressed by it.”

On the season, Smith has started all 33 games for Auburn. He is averaging 27.6 minutes per game, posting a line of 17.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.0 blocks, and 1.1 steals. On the year, he is shooting 43.8% from the field and 43.3% from three-point range.

Smith is expected to be one of the first picks in the upcoming NBA Draft. But for now, he continues to star on college basketball’s biggest stage with Auburn in the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers face off against 10th-seeded Miami on Sunday night with a Sweet 16 berth on the line.