Can someone explain the hype of Marcus Smart to me

[feckless]

Regarding his poor shooting last year, let's not forget that this happened to him last July.



I think a lot of people forget about that injury or how bad it was.  I'm looking forward to see if he can make significant improvements after a healthy offseason.

Has nothing to do with his atrocious shot selection --which is the real reason he is a poor shooter.

[kozlodoev]

Top young defensive guard in the league. Hope is that Smart can become a 14-15ppg threat to become a two-way player. Mostly through improved perimeter shooting.

I still think a hybrid of Tony Allen/Rodney Stuckey is in play for him if he improves his offensive game significantly.

Also, 15 ppg is not a hope, it's more like a pipe dream. What you're hoping here is a 10-12 ppg player who gives you solid defense and doesn't kill you with his inefficiency on offense.

[knuckleballer]

Regarding his poor shooting last year, let's not forget that this happened to him last July.



I think a lot of people forget about that injury or how bad it was.  I'm looking forward to see if he can make significant improvements after a healthy offseason.

Has nothing to do with his atrocious shot selection --which is the real reason he is a poor shooter.

He dropped from a 33.5% shooter from 3 as a rookie to 25.3% his second year.  I don't know if this is the reason, but at the very least he lost two months from his offseason where he should have been working on his shot.

[GetLucky]

Top young defensive guard in the league. Hope is that Smart can become a 14-15ppg threat to become a two-way player. Mostly through improved perimeter shooting.

I still think a hybrid of Tony Allen/Rodney Stuckey is in play for him if he improves his offensive game significantly.

Also, 15 ppg is not a hope, it's more like a pipe dream. What you're hoping here is a 10-12 ppg player who gives you solid defense and doesn't kill you with his inefficiency on offense.

Marcus Smart scored 9.1 points per game this year, his second in the NBA. I think it's ridiculous to say that his ceiling is capped at making one more basket per game than he did in his sophomore campaign. In fact, to say that in no way is it possible (without dreaming) for Marcus Smart to score 2-3 more baskets per game for the rest of his career is ridiculous.

[PickNRoll]

Pick a game and just count how many extra possessions Smart creates.  You could make a drinking game out of it.  Steals, taking charges, deflections, perfect rotations, excellent iso defense, diving on the floor, boxing out like a power forward, setting great picks, closing out on shooters, challenging shots at the rim, QB'ing the defense.  I could go on.  90% of his production doesn't show up in any box score.  He's really a phenom, given that he can't shoot.  It's hard to overstate his impact and it's not lost on Stevens.

Now do some math.  If he wins 12 extra possessions, who cares if he shot 1-6?

[celticsclay]

He was drafted high and he's young.  If he played in Philly or LA, nobody here would want anything to do with him.

That said, he still might have potential so we have some hope he might live up to his draft position.  So far, he's been very disappointing, but he still has time.  This season is an important one for him.  If he doesn't make a leap, the "next Tony Allen" talk will start to set in.

Wait Tony Allen has already had a 12 year career and has been a starter for 6 years on a perennial western playoff team. He has made 3 all NBA first defensive team and one second all defensive team thus far as well as a championship with the Celtics. Would this kind of career really be a disappointment for Smart? That would be a long above average starter career. He is not the number 1 or even a top 3 pick. I would also add there is some reason for optimism on offense as Smart averaged 9.1 points a game this year which would be the 3rd highest total of Allens career.

[celticsclay]

Top young defensive guard in the league. Hope is that Smart can become a 14-15ppg threat to become a two-way player. Mostly through improved perimeter shooting.

I still think a hybrid of Tony Allen/Rodney Stuckey is in play for him if he improves his offensive game significantly.

Also, 15 ppg is not a hope, it's more like a pipe dream. What you're hoping here is a 10-12 ppg player who gives you solid defense and doesn't kill you with his inefficiency on offense.

Marcus Smart scored 9.1 points per game this year, his second in the NBA. I think it's ridiculous to say that his ceiling is capped at making one more basket per game than he did in his sophomore campaign. In fact, to say that in no way is it possible (without dreaming) for Marcus Smart to score 2-3 more baskets per game for the rest of his career is ridiculous.

I agree. Veering back into the fellowship of the miserable territory here.

[PhoSita]

With his defense and peripheral attributes, Smart need only become a 12-14 point per game scorer (e.g. average for a shooting guard) with an outside shot that merits defending and an ability to get to the rim occasionally, and acceptable efficiency (e.g. 40 / 33 / 70) to be a top 10-15 player at his position.

Doesn't that beg a couple of questions?

1) What is his position?  Point guard?  Shooting guard?  Combo?  Generic "wing"?   If we are going to say he is "top 10-15 at his position", then who are the players we are comparing him to?

2) Is a top 10-15 player at a position an acceptable result for a #6 pick that was the result of tanking?   I feel that's a decent return for such a pick, but nothing to get too overly excited about.  Others may expect more.

As to number one, I think I addressed that in the rest of my post, or tried to at least. I don't think he will ever be a top point guard, but as a secondary ball handler at shooting guard, I think he could reach that level.

Is that enough for a top six pick? It's not ideal but I think Smart at his ceiling could be a top three player on a good team, though not a top scoring option. Just an elite role player. I agree with you that for pick number six you could do a lot worse.

[green_bballers13]

Can someone explain why Marcus Smart is terrible at offense? He has played 2 seasons, has spent a lot of energy on defense to secure minutes as a top 6 player on a playoff team, and is by no means a finished product. His 20 pt, 8 reb, 5 assist line in Game 3 vs the Hawks indicates offensive potential. While he might always be a better defensive player, he might also become a good offensive player as well. Smart has already hit clutch 3's, demonstrated toughness while driving to the net, collected offensive rebounds and converted steals into points. Any team could find room for a balanced 22 yr old player who plays like a pitbull.

I think he's a unique NBA player and its tough to find comps for his potential. A beefier Joe Dumars maybe.

[SHAQATTACK]

He is my favorite player

Nuff said 

[GreenWarrior]

if you don't see it, no one here is going to be able to explain the hype.

and the "it" is - marcus is the only player on the team who impacts the game with just his presence.

I know he's not an all star in his 2nd season but having that ability is indeed something that's  hard to come by.

I understand he was a high pick but let's not dismiss guys that don't average 20 pts a game only in their 2nd season.

[PickNRoll]

Top young defensive guard in the league. Hope is that Smart can become a 14-15ppg threat to become a two-way player. Mostly through improved perimeter shooting.

I still think a hybrid of Tony Allen/Rodney Stuckey is in play for him if he improves his offensive game significantly.

Also, 15 ppg is not a hope, it's more like a pipe dream. What you're hoping here is a 10-12 ppg player who gives you solid defense and doesn't kill you with his inefficiency on offense.

He's on a similar trajectory to Bradley who went 2 -> 7 -> 9 -> 15ppg.  Why not Smart?

[celticsclay]

Top young defensive guard in the league. Hope is that Smart can become a 14-15ppg threat to become a two-way player. Mostly through improved perimeter shooting.

I still think a hybrid of Tony Allen/Rodney Stuckey is in play for him if he improves his offensive game significantly.

Also, 15 ppg is not a hope, it's more like a pipe dream. What you're hoping here is a 10-12 ppg player who gives you solid defense and doesn't kill you with his inefficiency on offense.

He's on a similar trajectory to Bradley who went 2 -> 7 -> 9 -> 15ppg.  Why not Smart?

it has been determined by the powers that be with dark arts.

[LarBrd33]

He was drafted high and he's young.  If he played in Philly or LA, nobody here would want anything to do with him.

That said, he still might have potential so we have some hope he might live up to his draft position.  So far, he's been very disappointing, but he still has time.  This season is an important one for him.  If he doesn't make a leap, the "next Tony Allen" talk will start to set in.

Wait Tony Allen has already had a 12 year career and has been a starter for 6 years on a perennial western playoff team. He has made 3 all NBA first defensive team and one second all defensive team thus far as well as a championship with the Celtics. Would this kind of career really be a disappointment for Smart?

Yes that would absolutely be a disappointment considering the expectations of the pick.  The anticipation was that he'd be the type of franchise talent that we could build around.  Many anticipated him coming in and averaging close to Tyreke Evans numbers (20 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists).  He was seen as the future of the team.  He may peak out as a Tony Allen type role player and have a long career contributing to teams.   That would be admirable if he was drafted at the end of the 1st round like Allen.  But if that's Smart's peak, yeah... that's a disappointment.   Let's first see if he even accomplishes that... and keep hoping he develops into something more substantial.

A year ago I suggested that the jury was still out on the Smart vs Randle debate and while Smart was clearly ahead of him, Randle might close the gap during his rookie season.

How do you guys see the gap now?  How much of a gap does Smart have over Randle at this point?  Randle averaged 11 points, 10.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists with 43%/28%/72% shooting last season.  It'll be interesting to see how much improvement both of those guys make (Smart's 3rd season and Randle's 2nd).   I wouldn't be stunned to see both of them playing for new teams next year.

[alldaboston]

Top young defensive guard in the league. Hope is that Smart can become a 14-15ppg threat to become a two-way player. Mostly through improved perimeter shooting.

I still think a hybrid of Tony Allen/Rodney Stuckey is in play for him if he improves his offensive game significantly.

Also, 15 ppg is not a hope, it's more like a pipe dream. What you're hoping here is a 10-12 ppg player who gives you solid defense and doesn't kill you with his inefficiency on offense.

He's on a similar trajectory to Bradley who went 2 -> 7 -> 9 -> 15ppg.  Why not Smart?

Exactly. Why do people think Marcus has hit his ceiling already? He's 22, people. He's gonna have a bigger role next year. He's gonna get more PT, especially on the ball if Turner leaves. It's a little early, but I'm hoping for a mini-breakout season next year from him.