the next progression for Smart and Young?

[loco_91]

From Smart, I want to see him play efficiently in a limited role offensively most nights. Then, I want to see him exploiting favorable matchups vs smaller guards-- bully them for FTs or draw the double team and kick it out.

From Young, I want to see commitment on the defensive end. With that will come minutes in the rotation. I'd be very happy if he could be earning 15-20mpg by the end of the season.

[GC003332]

If they are both still with the team for summer league, Smart handling the ball more and getting into the lane, show some more signs of explosiveness.Young given the responsibility to check the other squads top wing scorer and show more intensity of effort.

[hpantazo]

i hope smart works on his shot and studies a lot of tape of Gary Payton.  He's doesn't seem that explosive/athletic.  He can't handle the ball that well.  He can't create his shot or shoot well.   He's a pretty below average offensive player.   He does have decent size for a guard, though... so maybe he can learn how to post up like Payton did in his day.

Smart is more athletic than people give him credit for. He played most of the season on an injured ankle, which sapped his speed and explosiveness. He admitted this himself publicly after the season. It's quite impressive that he managed to accomplish what he did this season in hindsight. He has already shown that he does one thing very well on offense, get to the FT line, which is a huge skill in the NBA. He also showed a significant improvement in his outside shot, which was likely due to the fact that he couldn't drive as well with his injured ankle so he had to focus more on his long distance shooting. Smart will be a multi-time all-star and a core player on some great teams when all is said and done, it's just a question of whether or not that will be with Boston or with some other team.

[shrinkage36]

First, I'd like to see the offense, and offensive plays run through Smart, and him playing 90% at point guard in MOST games.

Secondly - I'd like to see him shave down a bit, maybe 7 lbs.

I'd like to see him get in to the lane and use different shots like the floater, etc.

Would love to see him hit a higher percentage of his 3-pointers, and attack the rim a lot/finish better around the rim.

Would like for him to step up as the leader of the team.

Would like to see Young take a more active role in the offense and knock down his shots.
Would also like to see him add a bit more muscle. He needs to start moving other players over and finding his way to the starting line up.

[Future Celtics Owner]

i hope smart works on his shot and studies a lot of tape of Gary Payton.  He's doesn't seem that explosive/athletic.  He can't handle the ball that well.  He can't create his shot or shoot well.   He's a pretty below average offensive player.   He does have decent size for a guard, though... so maybe he can learn how to post up like Payton did in his day.

Smart is more athletic than people give him credit for. He played most of the season on an injured ankle, which sapped his speed and explosiveness. He admitted this himself publicly after the season. It's quite impressive that he managed to accomplish what he did this season in hindsight. He has already shown that he does one thing very well on offense, get to the FT line, which is a huge skill in the NBA. He also showed a significant improvement in his outside shot, which was likely due to the fact that he couldn't drive as well with his injured ankle so he had to focus more on his long distance shooting. Smart will be a multi-time all-star and a core player on some great teams when all is said and done, it's just a question of whether or not that will be with Boston or with some other team.

I can see where LarBrd33 is coming from because Smart did not show the explosiveness that he did in the past or at the combine. He barely attacked the rim or penetrated to kick out, at least not as much as he is capable of. I'm sure the ankle injury was part of it but even during SL and before the injury he was the same. Do you see all the people on this thread, heck on most threads that say Marcus has to start penetrating more; its a lot. Well today I said on this thread that Marcus has to lose body fat, then I looked more into this situation and Marcus' measurements and athleticism. I found something that actually shocked me. It could turn into a great thing and I think it will, but it really explains why Marcus had some trouble with his first step and penetrating in the NBA. Thanks to the OP and everyone because I am kind of excited to start a thread dealing with what I found and how it affects Marcus.

I hope you check it out I'm going to put graphs up (I think) and do some more research. I will also post a link to this thread(the thread I am starting has to deal with Marcus individually and will possibly be an ongoing thing.

[Evantime34]

I think you will see more consistent offensive numbers from Smart. His offensive improvement will stem from more drives to the hoop and a big jump in fouls drawn.

Young will have games where he produces at a high level offensively. He will have other games where he does nothing on offense. His defense will slightly improve but there will be times he gets lost.

[Forza Juventus]

I just hope they continue to improve. So I hope Smart drives to the basket more, draws more fouls, improves his shooting percentage, and improves his point guard skills. And as for Young I mainly just hope he solidifies a spot in the rotation.

[Ilikesports17]

I want to see activity(running around screens, not just standing at the 3 pt line), 3 pt consistency, and defensive improvement from young.

From Smart I, like everyone else want to see him get to the hoop more, I want to see his handle and explosion improve, and i want to see continued improvement in the jump shot.

[footey]

i hope smart works on his shot and studies a lot of tape of Gary Payton.  He's doesn't seem that explosive/athletic.  He can't handle the ball that well.  He can't create his shot or shoot well.   He's a pretty below average offensive player.   He does have decent size for a guard, though... so maybe he can learn how to post up like Payton did in his day.

Agree. He actually showed decent post up skills in summer league. Had a nice spin move.  Hope he brings that into the regular season.

[Celtics18]

I think the Celtics organization consciously worked to improve Marcus Smart's ability as a spot up perimeter shooter during his rookie season.  Outside shooting was reportedly one of his major weaknesses coming into the league.  If the goal was to turn him into a serviceable three point shooter  last year, the results by Marcus were largely a success.  He ended up shooting .335 from deep in his inaugural season which is a respectable number for an NBA point guard.

I am hoping that in his second season, he will work on his on his off the dribble skills more.  Down the road, the fact that he worked on his perimeter, spot up shooting so much as a rookie is going to end up being a huge boon to his overall offensive game moving forward.

I believe that he will show that his dribble penetration game is already more advanced than many of us are giving him credit for.  He simply didn't do it all that much last year as his primary offensive role was as a perimeter floor spacer.

Once he has the ball in his hands more and is running the show offensively, I think he will surprise many with an offensive game that is more advanced than he has shown to date.

I'm excited to see his sophomore campaign.

[JOMVP]

I don't see Marcus Smart as a PG in this league. I see him as a great wing defender whose offense will see major improvement next year, who can also see the floor pretty well for a 2 guard to help with ball movement. I have a feeling Ainge feels the same, and is trying to get into the top of the draft to actually select a point guard like D'Angelo Russell. You'll either see the same back court as last year with Turner/Bradley/Smart/IT or Bradley is going to get dealt (with other pieces) to get into the top of the draft to get Russell or Mudiay.

As for James Young, I'm confident he can make the leap to rotational player just because of the confidence he has in himself. I went to a game in February when he was getting some consistent minutes before the IT trade and he was jacking up all kinds of shots. He wasn't making many of them, but I liked the confidence he had in himself to keep shooting.

[krumeto]

I want to see activity(running around screens, not just standing at the 3 pt line), 3 pt consistency, and defensive improvement from young.

Same areas to me for Young.

I hope he watches a lot of tape of Ray and JJ Redick and off-ball movement - running off-screens, when to lose your man, when to change directions.

He will play with the second unit with IT having the ball a lot. IT is great at penetrating and collapsing the D. Young must learn to make himself available - at the 3 point line or cutting like AB used to in 2013.

The next thing would be defense - move purposefully on D, do his rotation. Step by step improvement.

[HomerSapien]

Smart:
1. Improved ball handling
2. Ability to attack the rim
3. Continued improvement on jump shot

I want Marcus to demonstrate that he has the skills to be the teams starting PG long-term.  I like that he can also function off the ball when IT is in the game, but I want to see Marcus take a bigger role in leading the teams offense.  Additionally, I want to see Marcus show that he can score by attacking the rim.  I'm hopeful his ankle injury played a big part in his lack of explosiveness last year - but I won't believe it til I see it.

Young:
1. NBA Body
2. Get good at finding/making his shots at NBA level
3. Ball handling

In a nutshell, I want James Young to look like he belongs in a NBA rotation.  First and foremost, he needs to add muscle which it sounds like is progressing nicely this offseason. 2ndly, with a year of experience under his belt, I hope we see James Young more confident in finding shots within the C's offense, and to that end, with improved ball handling I expect James Young has the capability to attack the basket and get to the line rather than be marginalized as just a 3 point shooter.  I'm fine if he still makes an occasional D-League trip to get minutes, but by seasons end I'd like to see that he has a regular spot in the rotation at 15+ min per game.

[BDeCosta26]

I think the Celtics organization consciously worked to improve Marcus Smart's ability as a spot up perimeter shooter during his rookie season.  Outside shooting was reportedly one of his major weaknesses coming into the league.  If the goal was to turn him into a serviceable three point shooter  last year, the results by Marcus were largely a success.  He ended up shooting .335 from deep in his inaugural season which is a respectable number for an NBA point guard.

I am hoping that in his second season, he will work on his on his off the dribble skills more.  Down the road, the fact that he worked on his perimeter, spot up shooting so much as a rookie is going to end up being a huge boon to his overall offensive game moving forward.

I believe that he will show that his dribble penetration game is already more advanced than many of us are giving him credit for.  He simply didn't do it all that much last year as his primary offensive role was as a perimeter floor spacer.

Once he has the ball in his hands more and is running the show offensively, I think he will surprise many with an offensive game that is more advanced than he has shown to date.

I'm excited to see his sophomore campaign.

TP. People always say "He needs to drive to the hoop more" or "he should be posting up smaller guards more" like it's a simple decision that he just has to make. It's not. You can't drive to the hoop very often if your not the primary ball-handler and your never the featured option on a play designed to create a driving lane, and it's nearly impossible to post up other guards without a designed action to pull the opposing bigs away from the block. For example, when Zeller is in it's harder to post up Smart than when Olynyk is in because opposing 4s and 5s HAVE to guard KO all the way to the perimeter. Zeller not so much.

But it really comes down to this. Stevens knew Smarts defense was going to command significant PT, but since his offense isn't equally advanced, the best thing to do was put him at the arc and have him wait for an open shot. His jumper needed the most improvement anyways, and we were trying to win games. As we get to Smarts 2nd and 3rd year, we'll see him become a more featured part of the game plan. I'm pretty sure of that.

Kid has a seriously bright future, and I want him here with us to see it.

[Celtics18]

I think the Celtics organization consciously worked to improve Marcus Smart's ability as a spot up perimeter shooter during his rookie season.  Outside shooting was reportedly one of his major weaknesses coming into the league.  If the goal was to turn him into a serviceable three point shooter  last year, the results by Marcus were largely a success.  He ended up shooting .335 from deep in his inaugural season which is a respectable number for an NBA point guard.

I am hoping that in his second season, he will work on his on his off the dribble skills more.  Down the road, the fact that he worked on his perimeter, spot up shooting so much as a rookie is going to end up being a huge boon to his overall offensive game moving forward.

I believe that he will show that his dribble penetration game is already more advanced than many of us are giving him credit for.  He simply didn't do it all that much last year as his primary offensive role was as a perimeter floor spacer.

Once he has the ball in his hands more and is running the show offensively, I think he will surprise many with an offensive game that is more advanced than he has shown to date.

I'm excited to see his sophomore campaign.

TP. People always say "He needs to drive to the hoop more" or "he should be posting up smaller guards more" like it's a simple decision that he just has to make. It's not. You can't drive to the hoop very often if your not the primary ball-handler and your never the featured option on a play designed to create a driving lane, and it's nearly impossible to post up other guards without a designed action to pull the opposing bigs away from the block. For example, when Zeller is in it's harder to post up Smart than when Olynyk is in because opposing 4s and 5s HAVE to guard KO all the way to the perimeter. Zeller not so much.

But it really comes down to this. Stevens knew Smarts defense was going to command significant PT, but since his offense isn't equally advanced, the best thing to do was put him at the arc and have him wait for an open shot. His jumper needed the most improvement anyways, and we were trying to win games. As we get to Smarts 2nd and 3rd year, we'll see him become a more featured part of the game plan. I'm pretty sure of that.

Kid has a seriously bright future, and I want him here with us to see it.

TP back at you.