I mean, I get it, he makes the winning plays late in games, his hustle is admirable, and he's a gritty defender (sort of like "our version of Draymond Green or Tony Allen")
But it looks like his shooting has shown NO improvement, and might actually be a lot worse than before
Most (including me) speculated he could get a contract of 4 years, 75M+ in RFA from either the C's or another team (as his market value, and based on what a few other "similar" players have received in the recent months).
Maybe that's not the case anymore. Obviously, still a long way to go this season, but if his shooting remains relatively poor all season, I think even bad teams w/cap won't offer Smart that big of a contract, and so maybe we can keep him w/Bird Rights on a 4 year deal worth less than 16M/year, OR maybe even Smart pulls off a "Nerlens Noel" and signs a prove-it deal with the Qualifying offer?
Either way, looks like Ainge was wise to not bother with contract negotiations with Smart in October, and to take a risk and see how Smart does THIS season.
Smart will get paid, but I doubt he's getting paid THAT much the way he's been playing. Just my thoughts.