Marcus Smart Deserves a Raise

[18isGREATERthan72]

Strips the rebound and in same motion a no look to Robert Williams ,guarding both Porzingis and Donic , in control in paint for several layups and a kick out to Green for three ,a track down block  ,hitting dagger threes and taking a flagrant and a low blow.

And he is a stretch six defensive all star.
He wants to be in Boston his whole career  get an extra year team option and give him a raise.

As usual turnovers are overlooked by fans. Smart (along with  Brown, btw) are leading the way for Boston - the team is first in the league in turnovers.

Big breakthrough for Smart - he’s always been way too turnover-prone.

Am I misunderstanding this post?  Smart is tied for best in the league for Ast / TO ratio right now at 6.0, and the Celtics as a team have the best Ast / TO ratio at 2.1.

Their TOV% is 11.3% which is the lowest in the league.  Next lowest are the Pacers are 13.3%

Really the only weakness this team has right now is their rebounding.  They're second to last in REB%.

TP for finding the stats!

Basketball Reference has an even better number, which is what I was looking at: 10.1%.

I pulled these numbers this morning from the NBA website.  Dunno why they'd be different, but it's possible that I had a filter on without realizing it.

[dannyboy35]

Unfortunately the hard ball negotiating by Ainge may have done the damage on Smart and Brown relationships... pretty soon both will feel underpaid and that is not a good thing carrying forward

  Smart was a big overpay at the time several million more than anyone would pay. Ainge hooked him up and then sum. Also makes him easier to be worked in on a trade if we want. Smart should be very grateful.  Brown was smart to jump at that offer with the whole China thing.

[keevsnick]

I thought we were last in turnovers?

Obviously I didn’t say that very well. Maybe I should have said ‘best’.

Strips the rebound and in same motion a no look to Robert Williams ,guarding both Porzingis and Donic , in control in paint for several layups and a kick out to Green for three ,a track down block  ,hitting dagger threes and taking a flagrant and a low blow.

And he is a stretch six defensive all star.
He wants to be in Boston his whole career  get an extra year team option and give him a raise.

As usual turnovers are overlooked by fans. Smart (along with  Brown, btw) are leading the way for Boston - the team is first in the league in turnovers.

Big breakthrough for Smart - he’s always been way too turnover-prone.

Am I misunderstanding this post?  Smart is tied for best in the league for Ast / TO ratio right now at 6.0, and the Celtics as a team have the best Ast / TO ratio at 2.1.

Their TOV% is 11.3% which is the lowest in the league.  Next lowest are the Pacers are 13.3%

Really the only weakness this team has right now is their rebounding.  They're second to last in REB%.

Yes, you’re misunderstanding. My bad.

My point was that Marcus has had a huge breakthrough with turnovers. He’s always been turnover-prone - until this year (so far). He’s only a part of the team being better, though. Kemba has been better than Kyrie, for example... etc.

Looking it up MS's career turnover percentage is 15.2, this year its at 8.1%. He's among a number of Celtics doing very well like Jaylen at 6.8% and Kemba at 9.6% and Tatum at 8.8% which are exceptional given their 24%,  29% and 26.6% usages respectively. 

[Chef Parish]

For every player we can say is underpaid, we can find one that's overpaid. It sucks both ways.

[Hoopvortex]

Strips the rebound and in same motion a no look to Robert Williams ,guarding both Porzingis and Donic , in control in paint for several layups and a kick out to Green for three ,a track down block  ,hitting dagger threes and taking a flagrant and a low blow.

And he is a stretch six defensive all star.
He wants to be in Boston his whole career  get an extra year team option and give him a raise.

As usual turnovers are overlooked by fans. Smart (along with  Brown, btw) are leading the way for Boston - the team is first in the league in turnovers.

Big breakthrough for Smart - he’s always been way too turnover-prone.

Am I misunderstanding this post?  Smart is tied for best in the league for Ast / TO ratio right now at 6.0, and the Celtics as a team have the best Ast / TO ratio at 2.1.

Their TOV% is 11.3% which is the lowest in the league.  Next lowest are the Pacers are 13.3%

Really the only weakness this team has right now is their rebounding.  They're second to last in REB%.

TP for finding the stats!

Basketball Reference has an even better number, which is what I was looking at: 10.1%.

I pulled these numbers this morning from the NBA website.  Dunno why they'd be different, but it's possible that I had a filter on without realizing it.

I’m sure you probably got it right - different methods on the two sites, most likely. If NBA.com is using Synergy or whatever to get exact possession data, their number is better. Either way, Boston is tops in the league, and Smart is a big reason why.

Brown’s TOV% is even better - that’s worth noting because he’s getting the ball to the rim so much - and he’s doing it without turning the ball over. I suppose we will still hear comments about his deficient ballhandling for a while, but it might just be time to retire that conversation.

[tstorey_97]

I liked him at Oklahoma State because he wanted to win and this isn't true of all NBA players.

While watching Smart play last night?

I'm just thinking to myself that Marcus Smart is an NBA star.

He's not an "off the bench guy."

He's not some one who just plays defense and is famous for it.

He's not a "showy" or overdone player stretching for being recognized.

Marcus Smart is a legit NBA star. Every freaking player and every freaking coach on every NBA team knows it and they know because he kicks their butt every chance he gets at either end of the court.

You need stats to be a star?

The team wins when he is playing on the court with them. That takes care of the stats.

He doesn't get the "crazy money", but, look at all the "crazy money" players. They get respect with 1 minute and 7 seconds left on the clock in a tie game? Sure they do, they just don't get the same type of respect that Smart does.

[Ogaju]

He needs to fire his agent. He is getting fleeced.

[bdm860]

I wonder if he has a shot a DPOY or 6MOY this year.  It would be pretty sweet if he won both.  While that might be a stretch maybe he can at least finish top 3 in the voting for each.

He's seems to be getting a lot of good pub early this year with the guarding 1-5 and stretch 6 comments and what not.

Smart finished 8th in DPOY voting last year, and several of those ahead of him seem to be having down years so far (Gobert, Turner, Green), George has yet to play, and who knows how many games Kawhi will play.  If Sixers/Bucks underperform expectations as a team, I can see that hurting Giannis and Embiid in the voting.  And if C's outperform (and Smart plays enough games), I think he might have a shot, or at least could hope for a top 3 finish. 

Uphill battle for sure though, only guard to win it in the last 30 years was Payton in '96.  Also helps to lead the league in blocks or steals, which is not something I expect Smart to do (though did finish 6th in spg last year).

Then there's 6MOY, usually goes to a high scorer, but not always.  Last player to win it averaging under 12ppg was Aaron Mckie in '01, though Iguodala finished a close 2nd in '16, and a very close 2nd '17.  Harrell and Williams are both averaging 20ppg off the bench with the Clippers, probably the front runners, though maybe George's return will hurt them.  I think if Smart's in the DPOY conversation, then he'll also be in the 6MOY conversation too (assuming Stevens keeps him on the bench when team is healthy), but this award seems like one of the Clippers to lose.  Maybe he can get a top 3 finish in the voting though.  Besides Williams, and Harrel, maybe Dragic and Dinwiddie are in the conversation here?

C's need to keep winning though for any of this to happen.

[Somebody]

I wonder if he has a shot a DPOY or 6MOY this year.  It would be pretty sweet if he won both.  While that might be a stretch maybe he can at least finish top 3 in the voting for each.

He's seems to be getting a lot of good pub early this year with the guarding 1-5 and stretch 6 comments and what not.

Smart finished 8th in DPOY voting last year, and several of those ahead of him seem to be having down years so far (Gobert, Turner, Green), George has yet to play, and who knows how many games Kawhi will play.  If Sixers/Bucks underperform expectations as a team, I can see that hurting Giannis and Embiid in the voting.  And if C's outperform (and Smart plays enough games), I think he might have a shot, or at least could hope for a top 3 finish. 

Uphill battle for sure though, only guard to win it in the last 30 years was Payton in '96.  Also helps to lead the league in blocks or steals, which is not something I expect Smart to do (though did finish 6th in spg last year).

Then there's 6MOY, usually goes to a high scorer, but not always.  Last player to win it averaging under 12ppg was Aaron Mckie in '01, though Iguodala finished a close 2nd in '16, and a very close 2nd '17.  Harrell and Williams are both averaging 20ppg off the bench with the Clippers, probably the front runners, though maybe George's return will hurt them.  I think if Smart's in the DPOY conversation, then he'll also be in the 6MOY conversation too (assuming Stevens keeps him on the bench when team is healthy), but this award seems like one of the Clippers to lose.  Maybe he can get a top 3 finish in the voting though.  Besides Williams, and Harrel, maybe Dragic and Dinwiddie are in the conversation here?

C's need to keep winning though for any of this to happen.

He definitely has a shot for DPOY. He's one of the best non-big defenders in the NBA if not the best due to his ability to guard 1-5 (most guys are 1-4 or 2-5, but very little can credibly check all 5 positions). Obviously his defensive value will fall short of all good big man defenders, but I wouldn't be surprised if he posts one of the best defensive seasons ever for a guard and gets rewarded for it with a DPOY. His defense already raises his impact to a sub All-Star level, and with his improved offense this season (improved shooting+passing, two of the most scalable skills in basketball) I wouldn't be surprised if statheads start championing him as an All-Star (at least I'm starting to , although I'm hardly a stathead).

Not sure about SMOTY, he might start too many games while Hayward is out.

[rollie mass]

Almost brought tears to my eyes the Bowling Party for Charity and IT showing up. The young guys are truly happy and it shines through .This situation  is rather unique with the Celtics collection of young draftees and young vets.

[td450]

I liked him at Oklahoma State because he wanted to win and this isn't true of all NBA players.

While watching Smart play last night?

I'm just thinking to myself that Marcus Smart is an NBA star.

He's not an "off the bench guy."

He's not some one who just plays defense and is famous for it.

He's not a "showy" or overdone player stretching for being recognized.

Marcus Smart is a legit NBA star. Every freaking player and every freaking coach on every NBA team knows it and they know because he kicks their butt every chance he gets at either end of the court.

You need stats to be a star?

The team wins when he is playing on the court with them. That takes care of the stats.

He doesn't get the "crazy money", but, look at all the "crazy money" players. They get respect with 1 minute and 7 seconds left on the clock in a tie game? Sure they do, they just don't get the same type of respect that Smart does.

This year the big story with him is that he is showing the ability to be a ball handler who can create against starters with almost no turnovers. He just never was able to do that consistently before. He's made a major step forward so far. Let's hope he can sustain this over the long run.

[Who]

I'd rate Smart at over $20 million a year. He is earning significantly less than that ($12.5mil) - so yes, he deserves a raise.

Smart is a top 10 SG in the league. His impact as a defender, passer, ball-handler, outside shooter, driver, rebounder make him more valuable than guys who score the ball more than he does but lack his all-around game. That is why I rate Smart as a top 10 SG and worth over $20mil per year.

[Somebody]

I'd rate Smart at over $20 million a year. He is earning significantly less than that ($12.5mil) - so yes, he deserves a raise.

Smart is a top 10 SG in the league. His impact as a defender, passer, ball-handler, outside shooter, driver, rebounder make him more valuable than guys who score the ball more than he does but lack his all-around game. That is why I rate Smart as a top 10 SG and worth over $20mil per year.

I'd go even further and argue that he's worth a max contract if he sustains his current offensive production throughout the season. I don't see why he shouldn't earn a max if he's a free agent next offseason, his combination of top tier non-big defense and valuable complementary offense (decent outside shooting on good volume, very good secondary playmaking on good ball security) makes him an All-Star who's no "worse" than the likes of Tobias Harris.

[A Future of Stevens]

Yeah assuming he doesn't drop off at all over the next few years, his current salary is fantastic. He isn't a FA until 2022 I believe, so I hope Marcus is here for the long haul. Truly a Celtic.

[Ogaju]

Yeah assuming he doesn't drop off at all over the next few years, his current salary is fantastic. He isn't a FA until 2022 I believe, so I hope Marcus is here for the long haul. Truly a Celtic.

pay him ...he is going to get disgruntled at some point if he continues playing like this.  Players trash talk each other with what they make. You gotta pay the  man.