Should Smart start at the 2 permanently?

[keevsnick]

I had a major concern about XXX's return and the stunted growth of Brown, Rozier, and Tatum.  That appears to have some to fruition, which really sucks, though I agree it's in the teams best interest to run with the vets given our recent struggles.  Smart and Mook are especially well-suited for the job.

See this is a sentiment I think is wrong. Playing Morris and Smart isnt getting us past GS and wont make us a championship short or long term. That happens if Jaylen and/or Tatum ellevate their game or play well enough to get us AD/ another MVP level player.

[tarheelsxxiii]

That was my point.  It's helpful to run with Smart and Mook now because the young guys are struggling and we now need to start thinking about playoff seeding.  BUT, I feared returning players would stunt the growth of Tatum, Brown and Rozier after that playoff run, and not prioritizing their growth is a large mistake imo.  I've often commented that we will not be serious contenders until Tatum is clearly the best player on the team, and he needs to become a lot more consistent (and get more opportunity) for that to happen.   

[Jvalin]

Should Smart start at the 2 permanently?

Nope. He made 40% of his 3-pointers last night, but overall he is a terrible shooter. The way I see it, Smart needs the ball in his hands in order to maximize his effectiveness on offense.

[The Oracle]

It depends on what our goal are. If we want to win some regular season games then sure. But when u get to the highest levels u need a guy who is at least a threat to score in the starting line up. Keep rolling with Jaylen, let him play his way out of his funk. He has been better recently (except for his 3pnt shot). And its not like smart being on the floor has led to us shutting down fast guards. But if Jaylen stinks for another 20 games then sure. Thats where im at, lets see at the half way mark.

Jaylen is owed nothing, this is a team trying to compete for a title and if he wants to start he should have to earn it.  Everyone should have to compete for every single minute they get, if you want em take em.  So far Morris and Smart are taking them.

[MJohnnyboy]

I think Kyrie would like it that way, or in the very least, he'd like for Smart to play beside him for the majority of his minutes. Smart's playmaking abilities help Kyrie play off the ball, a role that he thrives in. Smart also helps cover Irving's defensive shortcomings, though he has played better on that side this year.

That's not to say that Brown's been a problem. It's just that Smart fits better next to Irving than Jaylen does.

[smokeablount]

Irving/Smart/tatum/Morris/Horford lineup in 52 minutes has has an ORat. 121.7 and DRat. 96.6

Season best ORat. 125.3 last night for the team as a whole.

Small sample size warning but looks real good so far.  I have been advocating starting Smart dating clear back in place of Bradley with I.T..  His skillset is a nice compliment to Irving just as it was for I.T., and he is a necessary secondary playmaker as Hayward hasn't got his wheels under him yet and Brown/Tatum still haven't learned to create for others at all.

I like this lineup a lot. 5 three point shooters (kinda), 3 legit scorers + Al, and 2-3 legit defenders.

But I also feel like long term you could swap Brown for Morris and play him at SF if you felt Jaylen was needed vs the Warriors as opposed to someone like Morris, as others have mentioned, especially if it takes Hayward til next season to fully recover, like it may have for PG.

[playdream]

You can clearly see the difference on D with Smart and Brown, Smart is a far better team defender and against pick and roll, basically if we can defend pick and roll we are allright on D

[bopna]

Yeah, the "starting" thing doesn't really matter to me. But Marcus seems to thrive working out of the pick and roll when the big is super aggressive. Horford had a really nice game where he was forcing the issue.. but I want to see more pick and roll/pop action with Smart as the ball handler and Tatum/Brown/Hayward as the roll/pop man.

Im also clamoring for GH the playmaker for the second unit with Brown the pick n roll/pop guy. Rozier at the wings for the kickout and Baynes the utility rebounder..that second unit should flourish.

[Chris22]

I like the idea of Smart starting.

I like the idea of hitting the other team with your best defensive unit right from the start.

Rozier and Hayward can run the second unit.

[mr. dee]

Let's see how it rolls out first. While we look good so far, it could also be some sort of mirage. Maybe we should see how  they do first with this current lineup and if turned out to be effective for the rest of the season, then stick with it. Otherwise, find a right rotation that fit the player's strengths.

[ozgod]

You can clearly see the difference on D with Smart and Brown, Smart is a far better team defender and against pick and roll, basically if we can defend pick and roll we are allright on D

That's where all the guards have been killing us, on the high pick and roll. Fixing that goes a long way towards mitigating our other issues.

[keevsnick]

It depends on what our goal are. If we want to win some regular season games then sure. But when u get to the highest levels u need a guy who is at least a threat to score in the starting line up. Keep rolling with Jaylen, let him play his way out of his funk. He has been better recently (except for his 3pnt shot). And its not like smart being on the floor has led to us shutting down fast guards. But if Jaylen stinks for another 20 games then sure. Thats where im at, lets see at the half way mark.

Jaylen is owed nothing, this is a team trying to compete for a title and if he wants to start he should have to earn it.  Everyone should have to compete for every single minute they get, if you want em take em.  So far Morris and Smart are taking them.

That's  a naïve view of basketball and sports in general. And not the way literally anything works. There is always the bigger picture to consider. And if we are just talking about earning it, then Jaylen did that last year. More than enough to justify riding out the slump he is in. And if the discussion is about winning the title than swapping out Jaylen for Smart isn't gonna get you there. Not god enough. Maybe we aren't good enough with Jaylen at the 2, but we sure aren't with Smart.

[keevsnick]

And just to be clear, I'm not against Smart taking over at the 2. If Brad feels that's how he gets the best out of all his guys than go for it. I just don't think it matters a lot fr this years team. Maybe a win or two either way. And I think long term its better if Brown gets the reps with the first unit. And Tatum.

[byennie]

It depends on what our goal are. If we want to win some regular season games then sure. But when u get to the highest levels u need a guy who is at least a threat to score in the starting line up. Keep rolling with Jaylen, let him play his way out of his funk. He has been better recently (except for his 3pnt shot). And its not like smart being on the floor has led to us shutting down fast guards. But if Jaylen stinks for another 20 games then sure. Thats where im at, lets see at the half way mark.

Jaylen is owed nothing, this is a team trying to compete for a title and if he wants to start he should have to earn it.  Everyone should have to compete for every single minute they get, if you want em take em.  So far Morris and Smart are taking them.

That's  a naïve view of basketball and sports in general. And not the way literally anything works. There is always the bigger picture to consider. And if we are just talking about earning it, then Jaylen did that last year. More than enough to justify riding out the slump he is in. And if the discussion is about winning the title than swapping out Jaylen for Smart isn't gonna get you there. Not god enough. Maybe we aren't good enough with Jaylen at the 2, but we sure aren't with Smart.

That's a little much. While it's not the norm, there are some pretty successful organizations that hold their players to a very high standard of what benefits the team. The Patriots and Spurs come to mind.

I want Jaylen to succeed as much as anyone, and I would agree his upside is higher, but:

1) Smart remains the better overall defender
2) Jaylen is more redundant this year with Hayward back
3) If we want to beat GS, we have a former Finals MVP on our roster who already beat them, and who seems to enjoy playing alongside Smart.

By all means, I hope Brown comes roaring back, but earning your minutes and filling specific roles are not crazy ideas for a championship contender.

[A Future of Stevens]

I would be fine with Smart starting at the 2. I would like to continue bringing Morris off the bench to light up opposing benches. My ideal starting lineup at the moment would be:
Kyrie/Smart/Brown/Tatum/Horford with a bench of Hayward/Morris/Rozier/Baynes

Having Smart in would help set up Brown and Tatum off ball. Morris and Hayward (for now) are sufficient at creating against lesser defenses.